SES 


ROBERT  ERNEST  COWAN 


OCCASIONAL 
ADDRESSES^ 


BY 


GEO.  H.  WILLIAMS 


PRINTED   FOR   THE   AUTHOR 
BY    F.  W.   BALTES    AND   COMPANY 
AT   PORTLAND,  OREGON 
MDCCCXCV 


PREFACE. 


I  have  gathered  together,  from  newspapers  and  stray 
places,  the  following  addresses,  upon  the  idea,  sug- 
gested to  me,  that  they  are  worth  preservation  in 
book  form.  No  professional,  political  or  Congressional 
speeches  are  included. 

•  Primarily,  this  book  is  intended  as  a  souvenir  to  be 
given  to  my  friends;  but  a  limited  number  will  be  for 
sale  at  about  the  cost  of  their  publication. 

If  these  pages  afford  an  hour's  agreeable  reading  to 
my  friends,  or  if  they  make  a  lodgment  of  any  valuable 
thoughts  in  the  mind  of  the  reader,  all  that  I  can  rea- 
sonably expect  will  have  been  accomplished. 

0.  H.  W. 
Portland,  Oregon,  March,  1S95. 


286766 


CONTENTS. 


PACK 

GEN.  U.  S.  GRANT 1 

WILLIAM  PITT  FESSENDEN        ....  21 

GEORGE  WASHINGTON 29 

SALMON  P.  CHASE 44 

THE  PIONEERS  OF  OREGON   ....  46 

JUSTICE  SAMUEL  F.  MILLER      ....  72 

OUR  VETERANS 77 

THE  PORTLAND  EXPOSITION      ....  93 

GEN.  W.  T.  SHERMAN 102 

THE  VALUE  OF  GOOD  THOUGHTS      .        .        .106 

EX-JUSTICE  BENJAMIN  R.  CURTIS          .         .  120 

JUDGE  LORENZO  SAWYER           ....  125 

THE  OREGON  &  CALIFORNIA  RAILROAD        .  129 
PORTLAND,  OREGON  :  ITS  GROWTH  AND  PROSPECTS  138 

WILLIAM  I.,  EMPEROR  OK  GERMANY     .         .  14-9 

THE  STUDY  AND  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICINE          .  156 

THE  PORTLAND  EXPOSITION          .        .        .  167 
JUDGE  MATTHEW  P.  DKADY       .        .         .         .173 

THE  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA         .  176 

THE  UNITED  STATES  SUPREME  COURT     .        .  185 

THE  MILITIA  200 


OCCASIONAL  ADDRESSES 


BY 


GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 


GEN.  U.  5.  GRANT. 


ADDRESS    UPON    HIS    DEATH,    DELIVERED    IN    PORTLAND,    OREGON, 
AUGUST   8,   1885. 


Friends  and  Fellow  Citizens  :  I  have  been  invited 
by  the  bereaved  family  of  General  Grant,  on  account  of 
our  former  personal  and  official  relations,  to  join  the 
great  procession  that  is  now  marching  with  his  mortal 
remains  to  their  last  resting  place  at  Riverside  in  New 
York.  I  regret  my  inability  to  accept  their  invitation 
because  I  wanted,  before  he  passed  forever  from  human 
view,  to  look  once  more  on  that  face,  though  composed 
in  death,  whose  smiles  of  recognition  and  favor  are 
among  the  most  cherished  and  valued  memories  of  my 
life.  I  know  what  is  expected  at  a  public  funeral  — the 
long  processions,  the  mournful  music,  the  tolling  of 
bells  and  the  hush  of  business  indicate  the  style  of 
speech  suited  to  the  occasion,  but  if  I  were  to  give  vent 
to  my  feelings  I  should  speak  not  so  much  to  swell  this 
public  display,  as  to  express  my  personal  sorrow  at  the 
loss  of  one  who  has  been  tome  the  best  and  most  unself- 
ish of  friends.  I  appreciate  the  significance  of  this 
demonstration.  I  know  it  is  the  only  way  in  which  the 


2  ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

people  of  a  country  can  show  their  estimate  of  the  dis- 
tinguished dead,  but  withal  there  is  an  oppressive  sense 
of  emptiness  and  inadequacy  in  this  parade,  which  grates 
harshly  upon  the  severed  ties  of  friendship  and  affec- 
tion. Death  is  a  thing  of  awful  import  to  the  living. 
The  grave  is  dark,  unyielding  and  silent.  Stillness 
seems  suited  to  the  desolate  home  and  the  bleeding 
heart,  and  seclusion  is  sacred  to  the  sorrows  of  the 
afflicted  ;  but  the  great  world  mourns  for  a  day  with 
noise  and  show,  and  then  relapses  back  into  its  accus- 
tomed grooves  of  business  and  pleasure.  Multitudes 
who  have  read  or  heard  of  General  Grant  will  partici- 
pate in  the  ceremonies  of  this  day  from  a  sense  of  pro- 
priety or  duty,  but  there  are  many  others  in  every  part 
of  our  land  whose  hearts  are  bowed  down  with  unaf- 
fected sorrow.  I  do  not  speak  of  the  irreparable  loss 
and  inconsolable  grief  of  the  stricken  family,  but  I 
speak  especially  of  those  who  have  been  associated  with 
General  Grant  in  military  or  civil  life. 

Some  of  the  serious  misfortunes  of  the  Union  army 
in  the  war  of  the  rebellion  were  due  to  the  jealousy  by 
commanding  officers  of  each  other,  and  some  have  gone 
so  far  as  to  say  that  the  Confederacy  was  seriously  weak- 
ened by  jealousy  among  its  leaders  ;  but  there  was  noth- 
ing of  this  in  the  noble  nature  of  General  Grant.  He 
was  not  only  just  but  generous  to  his  brother  officers. 
He  was  as  careful  of  their  reputation  as  he  was  of  his 
own.  He  gave  credit  where  credit  was  due  and  granted 
to  merit  all  that  it  deserved.  He  was  not  only  willing 
but  anxious  that  others  should  win  laurels  upon  the 
field  of  battle  by  winning  victories  for  the  Union  cause. 
He  was  able  to  detect  incompetency  and  inefficiency  in 
command,  and  he  had  the  courage  to  put  them  where 


GEN.  U.  S.  GRANT.  3 

they  belonged.  Rife  as  jealousy  was  among  others, 
there  appears  to  have  been  little  or  none  towards  General 
Grant,  though  he  was  growing  all  the  time  into  great 
popularity  and  power.  This  arose  not  only  from  a  uni- 
versal confidence  in  his  capacity,  but  from  a  universal  con- 
viction that  he  would  be  just  to  all  his  comrades  in 
arms.  Friendships  begotten  under  such  circumstances 
take  hold  with  the  strength  of  brotherly  affection,  and 
to  the  hearts  of  those  officers  of  the  Union  army  who 
survive  the  death  of  their  great  commander  will  carry 
a  feeling  of  sorrow  to  which  the  pageantry  of  this  day 
can  give  1:0  expression. 

Thousands  of  the  soldiers  of  the.  Union  army  have 
outlived  the  man  who  so  often  led  them  to  victory. 
Confidence  by  soldiers  in  their  commanding  officer 
rapidly  ripens  into  affection  amid  the  perils  of  war. 
General  Grant  believed  that  armies  were  organized  to 
fight,  and  that  vigorous  and  sometimes  bloody  work 
was  essential  to  success  ;  but  he  was  always  anxious  for 
the  health  and  comfort  of  the  common  soldier,  and  ten- 
derly considerate  of  his  rights  and  interests.  He  was 
not  indifferent  to  the  value  of  discipline,  but  there  was 
no  taint  of  tyranny  in  his  disposition.  No  man  ever 
lived  with  less  regard  for  the  distinctions  of  rank  or 
office,  and  no  man  ever  placed  a  lower  estimate  upon 
those  differences  which  the  accidents  of  fortune  some- 
times create  among  men.  He  was  as  cordial  to  the  low- 
est private  as  to  the  highest  officer.  General  Grant  was 
not  an  emotional  man,  and  I  have  never  .seen  him 
exhibit  more  feeling  than  when  taking  some  man  by  the 
hand  who  had  fought  in  the  ranks  when  he  commanded 
in  battle.  Numerous  processions  are  marching  to-day 
with  draped  flags  and  funeral  dirges,  and  there  may  be 


4  ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

nothing  in  the  outward  display  to  distinguish  one 
mourner  from  another  ;  but  in  the  hearts  of  those  who 
knew  and  followed  General  Grant  through  the  struggles 
of  the  war,  there  will  be  a  feeling  of  sadness  that  can 
only  find  its  true  expression  in  the  silence  of  tears. 

Most  of  the'  members  of  General  Grant's  political 
household,  while  he  was  President,  are  sincere  mourners 
at  this  great  funeral.  There  is  nothing,  not  of  the 
family  relations,  which  comes  nearer  to  them  than  the 
Cabinet  of  the  President.  Confidence  there  is,  or  ought 
to  be,  unlimited  and  reciprocal.  Cabinet  officers  have 
every  possible  opportunity  to  learn  and  know  what  is 
real  and  true  in  the  character  of  their  chief.  Policy 
sometimes  makes  it  necessary  for  public  men  to  disguise 
their  motives  and  purposes  for  the  time  being  ;  but  in 
the  council-chamber  of  the  Cabinet  there  is  unstrained 
freedom  of  intercourse  and  speech.  General  Grant, 
while  he  was  President,  appeared  to  public  view  to 
be  one  person,  but  to  his  confidential  advisers  he  was 
quite  another  and  different  person.  He  was  called  a 
silent  and  not  unfrequently  a  stolid  man  by  those  who 
came  to  see  and  hear  him  talk,  and  sometimes  he  seemed 
to  be  an  indifferent  listener,  when  in  fact  he  was  trea- 
suring up  every  word  that  was  uttered  in  his  hearing. 
Possibly  his  reserve  in  general  speech  was  somewhat 
due  to  a  habit  acquired  in  the  army,  where  great  caution 
in  speaking  of  military  plans  and  operations  is  an  abso- 
lute necessity.  General  Grant  was  not  accustomed  to 
talk  much  to  visitors,  but  what  he  did  say  was  plain  and 
simple  and  directly  to  the  point.  When  in  the  Cabinet 
chamber,  he  threw  off  his  reserve  ;  he  was  frank,  fluent 
and  exceedingly  interesting  in  conversation.  Here  was 
where  he  unfolded  the  real  elements  of  his  nature.  Here 


GEN.  U.  S.  GRANT.  5 

was  where  candor,  truth  and  faith  prevailed  in  all  that 
was  said  or  done.  I  believe  it  to  be  universally  true 
that  the  better  General  Grant  was  known,  the  better  he 
was  liked.  Those  who  knew  him  best  loved  him  most. 
There  was  nothing  about  him  to  captivate  the  fancy  ; 
he  was  not  graceful  in  action  or  refined  in  his  tastes  ; 
he  knew  little  or  nothing  of  poetry  or  fine  literature, 
and  less,  if  possible,  of  music.  He  was  a  strong,  solid, 
robust  man.  His  nature  was  not  like  the  brilliant,  bab- 
bling, sparkling  brook,  imparting  music  to  the  ear  and 
beauty  to  the  eye,  but  it  was  more  like  the  slow  and 
steady  river,  whose  force  and  power  and  value  lie  in 
the  hidden  depth  of  its  waters.  Notwithstanding  all 
this,  there  was  around  General  Grant  an  atmosphere  as 
soft  as  the  haze  of  a  summer's  morning.  There  was 
no  moroseness  or  harshness  or  cruelty  in  his  temper, 
but  in  all  his  words  and  looks  there  was  kindness  and 
benignity  of  expression. 

When  Daniel  Webster  lay  dead  at  Marshfield,  a 
neighboring  farmer  gazing  into  his  coffin,  said,  as  it 
talking  to  the  great  statesman  :  "  Daniel  Webster,  the 
world  will  seem  lonesome  without  you."  I  am  sure 
that  this  simple  language  of  the  New  Hampshire  farmer 
can  be  properly  appropriated  to  this  occasion  by  every 
surviving  member  of  General  Grant's  political  family. 

My  intimate  acquaintance  with  General  Grant  com- 
menced in  1860,  when  in  some  way  I  became  one 
of  his  advisers  and  counsellors  in  a  controversy  he  then 
had  with  President  Johnson  and  his  Cabinet.  I  was 
exasperated  at  the  unjustifiable  attempt  made  to  impeach 
his  veracity,  but  I  found  him  cool  and  undisturbed, 
though  his  honor  was  at  stake,  and  undismayed  by  the 
formidable  array  of  power  and  influence  against  him.  I 


6  ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

had  frequent  consultations  with  him  after  he  became 
President  and  before  I  was  connected  with  his  adminis- 
tration, and  I  always,  and  under  the  most  trying  cir- 
cumstances, found  him  the  same  serene,  self-reliant, 
conscientious  man  and  officer.  I  was  called  to  his  Cab- 
inet in  1871,  and  for  nearly  four  years  my  relations  to 
him  were  of  the  most  intimate  nature,  and  I  believe  I 
enjoyed  his  unbounded  confidence.  Flattery  cannot 
"soothe  the  dull,  cold  ear  of  death,"  but  for  the  sake 
of  those  who  live,  I  want  to  say,  and  lay  this  tribute 
upon  his  tomb,  that  I  never  heard  General  Grant,  under 
*any  circumstances,  breathe  a  thought  or  a  sentiment 
that  was  not  consistent  with  perfect  integrity  and  the 
most  exalted  patriotism. 

During  his  second  administration,  especially,  the  sluice- 
ways of  slander  and  filthy  abuse  were  opened  upon  his 
devoted  head.  Most  of  the  New  York  city  newspapers, 
whose  politics  are  like  an  open  sewer  on  the  surface  of 
the  earth,  carrying  pollution  and  stench  wherever  it 
goes,  vied  with  each  other  in  assaults  upon  the  integrity 
and  capacity  of  the  man  whose  wisdom  and  virtues  they 
are  now  extolling  to  the  skies.  When  one  of  these  mer- 
cenary journals  made  an  accusation  against  a  public 
man,  Congress  responded  with  an  investigating  commit- 
tee, and  more  than  one  good  man  and  true  patriot  was 
hounded  to  his  grave  by  hirelings,  whose  bread  was  pur- 
chased by  the  then  current  coin  of  falsehood  and  cal- 
umny. Much  of  this  grew  out  of  Grant's  administrative 
policy  as  to  the  South,  but  more  out  of  an  apprehen- 
sion that  he  would  be  a  candidate  for  re-election  in 
1876.  One  day  a  newspaper  reporter  came  into  my 
office  and  inquired  about  some  matter,  and  in  answer  I 
stated  to  him  the  facts  ;  but  in  a  day  or  two  I  saw  in  his 


GEN.  U.  S.  GRANT.  7 

paper  a  total  misrepresentation  of  what  I  had  said,  and 
when  I  asked  for  an  explanation  he  said,  in  effect  : 
"We  have  nothing  in  particular  against  you,  but  we 
want  to  break  down  the  administration,  so  as  to  prevent 
the  re-election  of  General  Grant."  No  man — except, 
possibly,  Abraham  Lincoln  —  ever  administered  the  gov- 
ernment under  such  difficulties  as  surrounded  General 
Grant.  When  he  became  President  the  southern  states 
were  a  seething  abyss  of  discord  and  disjointed  ele- 
ments. The  fires  of  the  rebellion  were  slumbering  in 
its  ashes.  White  masters  and  negro  slaves  had  just 
been  made  equals  before  the  law,  with  all  the  bitterness 
of  race  prejudice  between  them.  Sectional  hate  was 
deep  and  bitter.  The  animosities  of  the  war  were 
unextinguished,  and  the  mortification  of  defeat  rankled 
in  the  bosoms  of  the  southern  people.  No  man  was 
ever  wise  enough  to  administer  the  government  under 
these  conditions  and  attempt  reconciliation,  harmony 
and  peace,  without  arousing  a  fierce  and  formidable 
opposition.  Little  or  no  allowance  was  made  to  General 
Grant  for  this  state  of  things.  He  was  always  slow  and 
reluctant  to  interfere  in  southern  matters,  and  when  dis- 
order, violence  and  murder  made  it  necessary  to  use  the 
strong  arm  of  the  government,  the  cry  of  military  usurp- 
ation came  up  from  the  South,  and  the  cowardly  politi- 
cians and  newspapers  of  the  North  re-echoed  the  cry. 
Grant's  administration  was  attacked  from  all  quarters 
for  an  alleged  oppressive  use  of  military  power  in 
the  southern  states,  when  the  only  thing  he  ever 
attempted  to  do  there  with  troops,  after  the  rebellion  was 
crushed,  was  to  conserve  the  public  peace.  I  do  not 
hesitate  to  say  that,  in  my  judgment,  the  kind-hearted- 
ness of  General  Grant  for  the  defeated  insurgents  was 


8  ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

a  weakness  in  his  southern  policy.  Knowing  what  I 
do,  if  I  had  been  in  his  place,  I  should  have  been  more 
aggressive  than  he  was.  I  would  not  have  persecuted 
or  proscribed  anybody.  I  would  have  had  no  forfeitures 
of  life  or  property  on  account  of  the  rebellion  ;  but  at  all 
hazards  and  at  any  expense  of  blood  or  treasure  I  would 
have  protected  the  men  in  the  south,  white  or  black, 
who  supported  the  Union  cause  when  the  Union  was 
trembling  to  its  fall. 

Considering  all  the  circumstances  and  all  that  was 
accomplished  during  the  eight  years  of  General  Grant's 
administration,  he  ought  to  be  placed  in  the  front  rank 
of  American  statesmen.  I  do  not  say  that  his  adminis- 
tration was  free  from  errors,  but  I  do  say  that  these,  in 
the  light  of  the  great  achievements  of  his  political  life, 
were  like  misty  clouds  before  the  morning  sun.  His  too 
trusting  heart  was  the  weakness  of  his  character.  He 
was  not  sudden  in  his  friendships,  but  when  they  were 
once  formed  they  took  hold  with  hooks  of  steel.  His 
faith  was  whole-hearted,  unreserved,  and  hard  to  be 
shaken.  He  was  easily  influenced  by  those  around  him 
in  whom  he  had  confidence,  as  to  appointments  and 
minor  matters  ;  but  when  the  weightier  matters  of  state 
demanded  his  attention,  "Richard  was  himself  again." 
I  have  to  say,  without  aiming  at  extreme  accuracy,  that 
General  Grant  appeared  to  me  to  be  a  small  man  in 
small  things  and  a  great  man  in  great  things.  There 
has  been  much  written  and  said  about  the  corruption  of 
the  Grant  administration.  Tennyson  well  says  that 
"a  lie  which  is  half  truth  is  the  most  dangerous 
of  lies."  There  was  a  mustard-seed  of  truth  and  a 
mountain  of  lies  in  the  stuff  published  upon  this  sub- 
ject. During  his  administration,  in  consequence  of  war, 


GEN.  U.  S.  GRANT.  9 

the  revenues  of  the  government  were  immense,  and  its 
expenditures  large.  Applying  the  best  test  that  can  be 
applied,  it  appears  that  the  loss  on  the  receipts,  in 
proportion  to  the  amount,  was  less  than  that  of  any 
former  administration.  Much  of  all  this,  however,  is 
buried  in  the  potter's  field  of  party  warfare.  Under  his 
administration,  order  and  system  were  established  where 
chaos  and  confusion  had  prevailed.  He  sent  his  com- 
pliments to  Great  Britain,  and  she  paid  us  $15,000,000 
for  her  dalliance  with  the  rebellion.  His  veto  of  the 
inflation  policy  opened  the  way  to  specie  payments.  But 
without  going  further  into  particulars,  I  am  willing  to 
leave  the  record  of  his  administration  in  the  hands  of 
impartial  history. 

To-day,  General  Grant  goes  down  to  the  darkness  and 
silence  of  the  grave,  but  truth  is  radiant  with  its  long- 
delayed  victory  and  "returning  justice  lifts  aloft  her 
scale."  Falsehood,  slander  and  calumny,  which  have 
preyed  upon  his  life,  fly  away  to  their  demoniac  abodes 
upon  the  death  of  their  victim.  The  bats  and  owls  of 
politics  have  suddenly  disappeared  and  birds  of  song 
and  beauty  fill  the  air  with  their  mournful  melodies. 
New  light  is  breaking  from  the  portals  of  the  tomb. 
Pens  that  defiled  the  public  journals  of  the  day  with 
defamation  of  the  too  sensitive  living,  are  now  busy 
writing  up  the  great  deeds  of  the  unconscious  dead. 
Tongues  that  distilled  their  venom  as  the  deadly  upas 
distils  its  dew,  are  now  trying  to  heal  with  honeyed 
phrases  the  wanton  and  wicked  wounds  they  made. 

People,  as  they  hear  the  tolling  of  the  bells  and  see 
the  emblems  of  mourning,  arc  beginning  to  think  ser- 
iously of  their  debt  of  gratitude  to  the  departed  states- 
man and  warrior.  Whether  the  United  States  would 


10         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

now  exist  as  a  nation  if  Grant  had  not  lived  is  a  ques- 
tion that  cannot  be  solved  ;  but  that  to  him  more  than 
to  any  other  individual  we  owe  the  preservation  of  the 
American  union  is  a  fact  that  admits  of  no  controversy. 
Many  of  us  can  remember  the  dark  days  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  war.  One  disaster  after  another  befell  the 
Union  forces,  and  the  heavens  of  the  future  were  hung 
in  black,  but  unexpectedly  the  gloom  gave  way  upon  the 
western  horizon  with  Grant's  great  success  at  Fort  Don- 
elson.  Hope,  faith  and  courage  were  the  northern  echoes 
of  this  great  victory.  It  was  the  beginning  of  the 
end.  I  cannot  and  need  not  tell  you  of  the  campaign 
sieges  and  battles  of  the  now  nerveless  warrior,  but  suf- 
fice it  to  say,  that  battle  followed  battle,  and  victory 
succeeded  victory,  to  the  final  triumph  at  Appomattox 
Court  House. 

To  what  position,  with  Bonaparte,  Wellington  and 
the  other  great  soldiers  of  modern  times,  history  will 
assign  General  Grant,  I  do  not  know,  but  it  may  be 
that  in  the  clearer  vision  of  future  times  he  will  appear 
greater  than  any  of  them.  Bonaparte  said  that  ' '  suc- 
cess is  the  test  of  merit,"  and  if  this  be  true,  then 
Grant  was  greater  than  Bonaparte  ;  but  the  assertion  of 
the  French  emperor  is  only  relatively  true.  Bonaparte 
possessed  adventitious  aids  which  Grant  did  not  have. 
He  governed  the  state  and  commanded  the  army. 
Everybody  and  everything  in  his  country  was  subordi- 
nate to  his  will.  France  was  united  and  enthusiastic  in 
his  support  ;  but  in  the  end  he  was  defeated,  his  army 
destroyed,  and  he  died  a  prisoner  and  in  exile.  Grant, 
on  the  other  hand,  in  his  highest  command,  was 
subordinate  to  a  higher  authority.  He  was  fighting  his 
own  countrymen  upon  their  own  soil.  His  foes  were 


GEN.  U.  S.  GRANT.  11 

brave  men,  inspired  with  the  idea  that  they  were  fight- 
ing for  independence.  Treason  was  in  his  front  and 
treachery  in  his  rear  ;  but  in  the  end  he  overcame  all 
these  difficulties  and  won  a  permanent  peace.  My 
opinion  is  that  Bonaparte  was  the  greater  general,  but 
Grant  had  the  better  judgment.  Bonaparte  had  more 
dash,  and  Grant  more  tenacity.  Either  might  have 
failed  if  placed  in  the  position  of  the  other.  I  am  not 
aware  that  General  Grant  was  ever  charged  with  an 
unnecessary  destruction  of  Confederate  life  or  property 
in  the  prosecution  of  the  war.  Bonaparte  and  most  of 
the  other  great  captains  of  history  have  been  accused  of 
taking  spoils,  and  of  cruelty  to  individuals  in  their 
power  ;  but  no  such  imputation  rests  upon  the  fame  of 
Grant.  He  accepted  whatever  bloodshed  or  destruction 
the  necessities  of  war  demanded,  but  for  human  suffer- 
ing he  had  the  tenderness  of  a  woman's  sympathies.  His 
bearing  at  the  surrender  of  Lee  was  in  keeping  with  his 
character.  There  was  nothing  said  or  done  that  was 
not  necessary  to  the  occasion.  There  was  no  offensive 
exultation  —  no  indignity  to  Confederate  officers  or 
troops  —  no  boastful  or  arbitrary  exercise  of  power.  But, 
quietly  and  gently  as  it  could  be  done,  the  surrender 
was  effected,  and  the  captured  officers  and  men  dis- 
missed to  their  homes  with  their  horses  and  equipments 
in  their  possession. 

Grant's  magnanimity  was  one  of  the  most  remarkable 
traits  of  his  character.  He  was  wholly  without  vanity 
or  egotism.  I  have  frequently  heard  him  talk  of  his 
military  operations  ;  but  he  seldom  spoke  of  himself, 
and  never  boastingly  of  his  own  actions.  His  success 
he  ascribed  chiefly  to  the  skill  and  bravery  of  his  subor- 
dinates and  soldiers.  He  indicated  no  fear  that  his 


12         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

laurels  would  be  appropriated  by  others.  He  gloried  in 
the  great  reputations  of  Sherman,  Sheridan  and  other 
distinguished  officers  of  the  army.  I  have  noticed  par- 
ticularly the  relations  between  Grant  and  Sherman. 
Judging  from  what  we  know  of  others,  it  might  be 
expected  that  there  would  be  some  feeling  of  rivalry  or 
jealousy  or  distrust  between  them,  but  nothing  of  the 
kind  was  discoverable.  They  always  spoke  in  the  high- 
est terms  of  each  other,  and  both  agreed  that  ' '  a  friend 
should  bear  his  friend's  infirmities." 

Grant  differed,  in  his  innate  and  inflexible  simplicity, 
from  all  the  military  men  who  have  figured  in  history. 
No  one  in  his  presence  would  be  apt  to  discover  from 
his  conversation  or  actions  that  he  was  a  man  of  great 
military  distinction  or  experience.  When  he  laid  down 
his  sword,  he  laid  down  all  semblance  of  the  soldier. 
Few  men  could  have  risen  as  Grant  did,  from  obscurity 
and  poverty,  to  be  the  laureled  chieftain  of  a  victorious 
army  —  the  chief  magistrate  of  a  great  nation  —  to  be 
the  guest  of  emperors  and  kings  —  without  some  visi- 
ble effect  upon  their  personal  bearing  ;  but  it  is  abso- 
lutely true  of  Grant,  that  at  the  head  of  the  army,  or  in 
the  executive  mansion,  or  at  the  courts  of  kings  and 
emperors,  he  made  no  more  display  of  conscious  import- 
ance than  he  did  when  hauling  wood  in  St.  Louis  or 
tanning  leather  in  Galena.  He  never  said  or  did  any- 
thing, under  any  circumstances,  for  effect.  When  per- 
sons distinguished  in  the  political,  literary  or  social 
world  called  upon  him  at  the  White  House,  he  was  civil 
and  courteous,  but  he  never  tried  to  show  off,  or  make 
them  think  that  he  had  any  extraordinary  civic  or  mili- 
tary attainments.  He  had  none  of  the  politician's 
policy.  When  senators  and  representatives  and  political 


GEN.  U.  S.  GRANT.  13 

leaders  called  upon  him,  he  received  them  with 
urbanity  and  listened  with  politeness  to  what  they  had 
to  say,  and  then,  with  a  few  words,  disposed  of  the  busi- 
ness in  hand,  apparently  as  indifferent  to  the  effect  upon 
his  popularity  as  though  he  had  been  discussing  the  play 
of  a  theatre.  He  had  none  of  that  misleading  palaver 
from  which  all  our  Presidents  have  not  been  free. 
When  the  gay  and  fashionable  world  thronged  to  his 
receptions,  or  he  gave  state  dinners  to  official  digni- 
taries, he  went  through  the  performances  with  as  little 
apparent  excitement  or  attempt  at  effect,  as  though  he 
was  going  through  the  routine  of  a  military  drill. 
From  the  time  that  Grant  appeared  as  the  evangel  of 
victory  to  a  bleeding  country  down  to  the  closing  scenes 
at  Mt.  McGregor,  there  was  no  affectation  or  theatrical 
display  in  his  private  or  public  life.  Everywhere  he 
bore  himself  with  the  same  rigid  sincerity  and  simplic- 
ity of  manner.  While  he  was  waiting  with  the  cold 
hand  of  death  upon  his  brow,  nothing  was  said  or  done 
by  him  to  excite  public  sympathy.  Though  the  harpies 
of  the  press  hung  around  his  dwelling  for  sensational 
news,  he  ministered  nothing  to  their  mercenary  pur- 
poses or  to  the  morbid  appetite  that  would  feed  its  curi- 
osity upon  the  heart-throbs  of  a  dying  man.  His 
physicians  published  bulletins  as  to  the  progress  of  the 
disease,  and  something  now  and  then  leaked  out  from 
the  sick  chamber,  but  nothing  emanated  from  the  sick 
man  that  might  not  have  come  from  the  lowliest  son  of 
obscurity.  He  made  no  religious  parade  for  the  public 
eye  ;  there  was  no  farewell  rhetoric  of  last  words  to  be 
repeated.  Nothing  of  that ;  but,  giving  his  case  to  his 
physicians,  he  waited  patiently,  working  when  he 
could,  for  the  night  of  death  to  come,  "when  no  man 


14         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

can  work. ' '  Whether  this  stubborn  simplicity  was  of  any 
advantage  or  not  to  General  Grant  in  life,  it  gives  him 
a  conspicuous  individuality  among  the  great  men  of 
history.  Bonaparte  and  Wellington,  and  even  Wash- 
ington, assimilated  their  bearing  and  manners  to  the 
fashions  of  their  office  and  power. 

I  know  nothing  of  the  religious  views  or  opinions  of 
General  Grant  further  than  may  be  inferred  from  the 
fact  that  he  was  a  regular  attendant  of  the  Methodist 
Church,  and  had  close  relations  with  some  of  its  minis- 
ters. I  know  that  he  was  no  bigot  or  fanatic,  but  lib- 
eral and  tolerant  in  his  views  ;  and  I  know,  too,  that  he 
was  a  man  of  unbending  morality.  I  do  not  mean  to 
say  that  he  would  not  play  cards  and  drink  wine  when 
so  disposed,  but  I  mean  to  say  that  as  to  purity 
of  word  and  deed,  as  to  fidelity  to  his  family,  as  to  truth, 
honor  and  charity,  he  was  without  reproach.  I  never 
heard  him  utter  a  profane  or  obscene  word  in  my  life, 
and  I  have  seen  him  greet  a  few  attempts  to  tell  smutty 
stories  in  his  presence  with  a  sickly  smile  of  disgust. 

I  have  tried,  without  much  success,  to  form  a  satisfac- 
tory opinion  as  to  what  intellectual  or  other  qualities 
made  him  a  great  military  leader.  No  doubt  his  imper- 
turbability was  one  great  element  of  his  success. 
Included  in  this  is  the  power  to  keep  cool  and  self-pos- 
sessed under  exciting  causes,  and  personal  courage  in  the 
face  of  danger.  Wellington  has  been  called  the  Iron 
Duke,  and  of  Grant  it  may  be  said,  without  much  exag- 
geration, that  he  was  a  man  of  iron  nerves.  I  believe 
that  Grant  was  so  constituted  that  if,  in  battle  where  he 
commanded,  news  came  to  him  that  one  part  of  his 
army  was  routed,  he  could  reason  as  coolly  upon  the 
situation  as  though  he  was  among  the  maps  and  papers 


GEN.  U.  S.  GRANT.  15 

of  his  office.  I  never  saw  him  in  battle,  but  I  have 
seen  him  unmoved  when  all  others  around  him  were 
excited.  I  was  with  him  on  the  evening  of  the  day 
when  he  was  re-elected  in  1872,  and  the  returns  of  the 
election  were  coming  in  from  different  parts  of  the 
country.  Washington  City  was  in  a  white  heat  of 
excitement,  and  everybody  in  a  fever  of  anxiety.  Tele- 
gram after  telegram  came  announcing  great  Republican 
majorities  in  New  York,  Pennsylvania  and  other  states, 
but  they  seemed  to  have  no  more  effect  upon  him  than 
upon  the  portraits  of  his  predecessors  hanging  in  the 
executive  mansion.  He  made  no  expression  of  his  feel- 
ings in  words,  and  it  was  impossible  to  detect  the  move- 
ment of  a  nerve  or  a  muscle  by  the  surrounding  excite- 
ment. 

Persons  may  be  qualified  for  the  command  of  a  corps 
or  a  brigade  and  not  be  qualified  for  general-in-chief  of 
all  the  armies,  which  latter  office  Grant  filled  with 
signal  ability.  He  had  one  peculiar  talent  which  may 
have  had  something  to  do  with  his  fitness  for  this  posi- 
tion, and  that  was,  his  almost  intuitive  knowledge  of 
the  topography  of  a  country  through  which  he  had 
passed.  He  made  a  brief  visit  to  Colorado  while  he  was 
President,  and  when  he  returned  he  seemed  to  have  the 
state  mapped  out  in  his  mind,  and  talked  of  the  roads 
and  towns  and  cities  as  though  he  had  been  a  resident 
there  for  years.  I  have  heard  him  discourse  in  the  same 
way  of  Mexico,  Texas  and  Oregon,  and  other  places 
where  he  had  been,  telling  of  localities,  situations  and 
distances  with  a  fullness  and  accuracy  which  few  men 
could  acquire  with  the  same  opportunities  for  observation. 
How  much  this  had  to  do  with  his  ability  to  plan  cam- 
paigns and  direct  their  execution  is  more  than  I  k:;ow. 


16         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

Towering,  however,  above  all  his  other  qualifications, 
was  his  rare  good  judgment  This,  as  to  military  men 
and  things,  must  have  been  of  the  highest  order. 
Whatever  mistakes  he  made  as  to  his  Cabinet  officers,  he 
made  none  as  to  his  military  assistants.  He  was  not 
unlike  Bonaparte  in  this  respect.  General  Grant's  pub- 
lic career  was  magnificent  in  its  proportions  and  results, 
and  it  will  stand,  growing  purer  and  brighter  with  the 
lapse  of  time,  as  an  imperishable  monument  in  the 
world's  history. 

I  speak  now  of  two  mistakes  of  his  private  life, 
because  I  know  they  are  the  thoughts  of  the  people. 
One  was  in  allowing  his  name  to  be  used  in  1880,  as  a 
candidate  for  the  Presidency.  I  have  no  positive  knowl- 
edge of  his  views  at  that  time,  but  believed  then  and 
believe  now  that  this  was  contrary  to  his  own  good 
judgment.  I  know  that  very  many  of  his  best  friends 
were  opposed  to  it  and  advised  against  it.  Certain  poli- 
ticians in  his  party,  understood  to  be  his  friends,  deter- 
mined to  make  him  a  candidate,  and  the  influences 
around  him  bore  in  that  direction  ;  and  so,  without  any 
positive  action,  and  unwilling  to  disoblige  his  impor- 
tunate friends,  he  allowed  himself  to  be  drawn  into  the 
convention,  to  be  rejected  by  it.  I  would  rather  have 
worked  and  voted  for  him  than  for  any  living  man,  but 
my  conviction  then  was,  and  still  is,  that  if  he  had  been 
nominated  he  would  have  been  defeated.  Much  as  the 
people  delighted  to  honor  him,  there  were  vast  numbers 
of  his  admirers  and  friends  who  would  not  vote  to  make 
any  man  President  for  a  third  term.  I  know  that  at 
one  time  General  Grant  contemplated  following  the 
example  of  Washington,  for  he  told  me  so  ;  but  influ- 
ence subsequently  may  have  changed  his  mind. 


GEN.  U.  S.  GRANT.  17 

His  other  and  greater  mistake  was  in  allowing  him- 
self to  be  drawn  into  his  late  disastrous  business  con- 
nection in  New  York.  Grand  as  he  was  in  the  turmoil 
of  war  and  in  the  affairs  of  state,  as  to  money  matters 
he  had  the  weakness  of  an  unsophisticated  boy.  He 
was  weak  in  trying  to  be  richer  when  he  was  rich 
enough,  and  weaker  still  in  trying  to  add  to  his  fortune 
by  speculations  in  Wall  Street,  but  in  this  respect  he  was 
not  peculiar,  for  history  shows  that  a  great  majority  of 
the  statesmen,  warriors  and  scholars,  who  have  gained 
distinction  as  such,  have  been  lacking  in  financial  abili- 
ties. That  General  Grant,  in  this  matter,  was  the 
victim  of  misplaced  confidence,  no  one  who  knows  him 
can  doubt  No  circumstance  has  come  to  light  to  raise 
a  question  in  the  mind  of  any  impartial  judge  as  to  his 
personal  integrity  ;  and  his  struggles  and  sacrifices  to 
make  reparation  to  those  injured  by  his  misfortunes 
ought  to  be  conclusive  proof  upon  this  point.  I  know 
not,  nor  can  it  ever  be  known  —  for  he  was  one  who 
would  not  tell  —  what  anguish  and  torture  he  suffered  by 
the  knowledge  that  innocent  people  had  been  reduced 
from  affluence  to  poverty  by  the  failure  of  his  firm,  but 
I  believe  it  worked  like  burning  iron  thrust  into  his  just 
and  generous  nature.  Mental  suffering,  as  well  as 
physical  pain,  reduced  this  mighty  man  of  war  to  the 
weakness  of  a  tottering  child. 

Whatever  his  errors  were,  as  to  his  personal  interests, 
his  judgment  was  unerring  as  to  the  interests  of  his 
country.  When  the  thunder-cloud  of  war  burst  from  a 
southern  sky,  he  made  no  mistake  as  to  the  line  of  his 
duty.  He  had  no  affiliation  with  the  administration  of 
Mr.  Lincoln  by  party  ties,  but  he  had  fought  for  the 
glory  of  the  flag  upon  the  bloody  fields  of  Mexico,  and 


18         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

he  could  not  see  it  dishonored  by  the  impious  hands  of 
treason .  When  it  was  proposed  as  a  war  measure  to 
emancipate  the  slaves,  his  judgment  approved  the  proc- 
lamation of  President  Lincoln,  and  thenceforward  he 
was  the  stalwart  champion  of  universal  freedom.  When 
he  was  called  to  be  chief  magistrate,  he  consented  reluc- 
tantly, from  a  sense  of  duty,  and  because  he  believed  — 
and  he  was  not  mistaken  in  his  judgment  —  that  he  could 
do  more  than  any  other  man  for  the  restoration  of  peace 
and  harmony  to  the  Union.  When  popular  clamor  for 
the  inflation  of  a  redundant  currency  carried  away  with 
it  such  men  as  Morton  and  Thurman,  he  stood  unshaken, 
like  a  rock  amid  the  waves  of  the  ocean,  and  by  his  veto 
saved  the  country  from  dishonor  and  bankruptcy. 

Two  of  our  Presidents  have  been  assassinated,  and 
the  nation  has  been  in  mourning  at  their  funerals  ;  but 
now  a  private  citizen  has  died  a  natural  death,  and  the 
nation  comes  to  his  funeral  like  Rachel  weeping  for  her 
children,  and  cannot  be  comforted.  How  shall  we 
account  for  this  universal  expression  of  sorrow  ?  Every 
citizen  of  the  United  States  is  interested  in  the  unity 
and  happiness  of  his  country,  and  therefore  every  citi- 
zen, in  the  death  of  General  Grant,  has  lost  a  benefactor 
and  a  friend.  We  do  not  know  the  strength  of  our 
attachments  to  kindred  and  friends  until  they  are  rent 
asunder  by  the  ruthless  hand  of  Death.  While  General 
Grant  was  alive  we  thought  of  him  kindly,  but  care- 
lessly —  as  we  think  of  one  whom  we  meet  every  day  ; 
but  when  it  was  known  that  a  fatal  disease  had  seized 
him  for  its  victim,  a  general  sympathy  sprang  up,  which 
grew  stronger  and  stronger  with  his  severe  and  pro- 
tracted sufferings.  When  he  died,  the  heart  of  the 
nation  was  tenderlv  affected  towards  him. 


GEN.  U.  S.  GRANT.  19 

General  Grant  was  tried  in  all  the  vicissitudes  of  war  ; 
time  and  again  his  courage  was  tested  at  the  cannon's 
mouth  and  under  the  iron  hail  of  battle  ;  his  public  and 
private  life  for  years  were  a  target  for  the  poisoned 
arrows  of  malice,  hatred  and  revenge  ;  but  never  was 
his  endurance,  courage  or  patience  so  tried  as  when  for 
half  a  year  in  helpless,  hopeless  weakness  he  was  com- 
pelled to  look  into  the  face  of  advancing  and  inevitable 
death.  Inscrutable  are  the  ways  of  the  Almighty,  and 
we  are  bound  to  accept  the  wisdom  of  Him  "  who 
doeth  all  things  well,"  but  to  human  understanding  it 
seems  hard  that  one  so  great,  so  good  and  so  just  should 
have  been  put  to  this  terrible  ordeal.  Uncomplain- 
ingly, unflinchingly  and  heroically  he  met  his  doom. 
When  the  disease  pressed  upon  him  he  said,  with  that 
naturalness  which  he  never  disguised  :  "I  should  be 
glad  to  live  ;  but  if  it  is  the  will  of  Providence,  I  am 
prepared  to  go."  Grand  in  life,  sublime  in  death, 

"  Calm  on  the  bosom  of  thy  God, 

Fair  spirit,  rest  thee  now  ; 
E'en  while  with  ours  thy  footsteps  trod, 

His  seal  was  on  thy  brow. 
Dust  to  its  narrow  house  beneath  — 

Soul  to  its  place  on  high  ! 
They  that  have  seen  thy  look  in  death 

No  more  may  fear  to  die." 

Nevermore  will  mortal  eye  see  this  man  whom  a 
nation  mourns  and  a  world  admired  ;  but  forgetftilness 
can  never  claim  him  for  her  own.  Tens  of  thousands 
of  veterans  who  still  live  will  cherish  with  affection, 
among  their  memories  of  the  war,  the  memory  of  him 
who  led  them  through  the  storm  of  battle  to  the  shin- 
ing heights  of  victory.  They  will  tell  of  him  to  their 
children,  and  they  to  theirs,  and  unborn  generations 


20         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

with  growing  admiration  shall  hear  the  story  of  his 
deeds.  Far  away  from  where  he  now  sleeps,  and  in  the 
lowly  cabins  of  the  South,  where  the  slave  once  crouched 
and  trembled,  the  emancipated  man  shall  tell  his  free- 
born  children  how  Grant  fought  for  their  freedom  ;  and 
the  tutelar  deities  of  their  song  and  story  shall  be  Lin- 
coln and  Grant.  Wherever  the  stars  and  stripes  may 
float  on  the  land  or  on  the  sea,  they  shall  emblazon  to 
the  world  with  their  inspiring  associations  the  illustrious 
name  of  Grant.  Union  and  Liberty  are  the  monuments 
of  his  fame.  To-day,  with  mourning  and  tears,  we  com- 
mit all  that  is  mortal  of  Ulysses  S.  Grant  to  the  bosom 
of  his  mother  Earth  ;  but  with  pride  we  commit  his 
name  to  the  pen  of  History,  to  be  written  with  those  of 
Washington  and  Lincoln,  high  upon  the  roll-call  of 

The  few  immortal  names 
That  were  not  born  to  die. 

On  the  banks  of  the  beautiful  Hudson  a  grateful 
country  will  erect  a  stately  monument  to  his  memory. 
Unnumbered  millions  in  the  far-off  future  will  gaze 
upon  that  structure  with  mingled  feelings  of  gratitude 
and  pride.  Sunshine  and  cloud,  for  centuries  to  come, 
will  cast  their  lights  and  shadows  upon  its  summit, 
while  the  memorial  river  ever  murmurs  at  its  base  ; 
but  when  the  marble  and  iron  and  brass  of  that  monu- 
ment shall  have  moldered  into  dust,  the  name  of  Grant 
will  live. 

Death  makes  no  conquest  of  this  conqueror, 
For  now  he  lives  in  fame,  though  not  in  life. 


WILLIAM  PITT  FESSENDEN.  21 


WILLIAM    PITT    FESSENDEN. 


ADDRESS    UPON    HIS    DEATH,    DELIVERED    IN    THE    UNITED    STATES 
SENATE.    DECEMBER    it.    1869. 


Mr.  President :  William  Pitt  Fessenden,  though  not 
without  his  faults,  was  in  many  respects  a  model  sena- 
tor and  statesman.  Education  and  experience  had  cul- 
tivated and  matured  his  mental  faculties  ;  and  to  the 
consideration  of  every  public  question  upon  which  he 
was  called  to  act,  he  brought  a  careful,  enlightened  and 
independent  judgment.  Official  association  of  more 
than  ordinary  intimacy  enabled  me  to  observe  and  appre- 
ciate those  qualities  of  his  character  which  distinguish 
the  ideal  from  the  actual  senator.  Of  these,  the  most 
striking  —  that  which  gave  tone  and  complexion  to  the 
others  —  was  his  utter  repugnance  to  every  form  of 
indirection  and  deceit,  and  his  profound  contempt  for 
all  the  arts  and  appliances  of  the  demagogue.  Con- 
scious of  the  rectitude  of  his  own  purposes,  and  confi- 
dent in  the  correctness  of  his  own  views,  popular  clamor 
was  to  him  as  the  breath  of  an  idle  wind  ;  and  to  argue 
that  a  proposed  policy  which  he  believed  to  be  wrong 
would  please  the  people,  was  to  employ  the  weakest  of 
means  to  influence  his  sturdy  judgment.  Nothing  dis- 
turbed him  more  than  an  effort  to  carry  through  the 
Senate  for  partisan  ends  some  measure  which  he  consid- 
ered to  be  unreasonable  or  unjust  ;  and  I  have  seen  him 
writhe  with  pain  at  the  delivery  of  speeches  here,  the 
fallacies  and  false  conclusions  of  which,  though  obvi- 
ous to  him,  were  plausible  enough  to  impose  upon  the 
ignorant  or  mislead  the  unreflecting  populace.  Deep 


22          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

down  in  his  nature  was  implanted  an  instinctive  resist- 
ance to  the  smiles  of  flattery  as  well  as  the  frowns  of 
disfavor  ;  and,  by  either,  he  was  as  immovable  as  the 
mountain  cliff  whose  rugged  brow  encounters  the  sun- 
shine and  the  storm  with  equal  indifference.  Arising 
from  one's  intercourse  with  some  men  of  irreproachable 
character,  there  is  a  doubt  as  to  the  solidity  of  their 
moral  structure  —  a  fear  that  in  some  unhappy  moment 
temptation  may  overpower  them.  But  no  such  doubts 
or  fears  obtruded  themselves  into  the  company  of  Mr. 
Fessenden.  It  was  not  only  that  perfect  faith  in  his 
integrity  possessed  all  those  who  approached  him  ; 
but  from  his  presence  there  proceeded  the  perfect  assur- 
ance that  he  was  as  much  beyond  the  reach  of  corrup- 
tion as  the  polished  steel  is  beyond  the  reach  of  that 
rust  which  fastens  itself  upon  the  softer  and  baser 
metals. 

While  calumny  with  its  thousand  tongues  discussed 
the  proceedings  of  this  body  upon  the  trial  of  the  late 
President,  there  was  none  so  wicked  or  malicious  as  to 
whisper  that  Mr.  Fessenden' s  motives  upon  that  occa- 
sion were  subject  to  sordid  influences.  Many  questioned 
the  legality  and  correctness  of  his  opinions  ;  many  were 
deeply  pained  at  his  vote  :  but  there  was  that  in  his 
solid  and  noble  character  which  made  it  impossible  to 
suppose  that  his  convictions  were  not  as  pure  in  their 
origin  as  they  were  fearless  in  expression. 

Some  men,  whose  public  and  official  acts  admit  of  no 
question,  allow  themselves  to  be  drawn  into  various 
irregularities  and  impurities  of  private  life  ;  but  he  was 
as  free  from  dissipation  and  all  its  affiliated  vices  as  he  was 
from  contact  with  any  scheme  of  plundering  or  fraudu- 
lent legislation.  Much  is  said  about  the  corruption 


WILLIAM  PITT  FESSENDEN.  23 

of  Congress  —  a  thousand  times  more  than  is  true  ; 
but,  be  that  as  it  may,  it  will  be  a  great  consolation  to 
the  family  and  friends  of  the  departed  senator  that 
through  all  the  seductions  and  temptations  of  a  long 
and  varied  political  life,  he  came  down  to  his  grave  full 
of  years  and  full  of  honors  —  a  pure  and  honest  man. 

Intellectually,  Mr.  Fessenden  was  among  the  foremost 
men  of  the  country.  Putting  aside  the  discussion  upon 
the  slavery  question,  in  which  the  pre-eminence  without 
dispute  belongs  to  another,  he  towered  in  mind  among 
those  around  him  like  Saul  in  form  among  his  country- 
men. While  admitting  his  title  to  this  distinction,  can- 
dor compels  me  to  say  that  upon  any  novel  and  excit- 
ing question  where  the  road  to  success  seemed  to  lie 
through  the  chances  of  recklessness  and  temerity,  he 
did  not  possess  the  requisite  qualifications  of  a  great 
parliamentary  leader.  He  believed  that  caution  was  the 
parent  of  safety.  He  was  so  careful  not  to  do  wrong 
that  sometimes  he  seemed  afraid  to  do  right.  All  that 
there  was  akin  to  cowardice  in  the  nature  of  Mr.  Fes- 
senden is  indicated  by  Shakespeare,  when  he  says  that 

"Conscience  does  make  cowards  of  us  all." 

Prudence  is  not  (infrequently  mistaken  for  timidity, 
and  it  is  hard  to  tell  where  one  ends  and  the  other 
begins  ;  but  that  the  deceased  should  be  described  as  a 
prudent  rather  than  a  timid  man,  is  evidenced  by  the 
fact  that,  as  to  any  untried  experiment  in  legislation, 
while  he  thought  little  of  himself,  he  was  much  con- 
cerned about  its  effect  upon  the  safety  and  happiness  of 
the  people,  and  the  honor  and  peace  of  the  country. 

One  feature  of  the  senatorial  career  of  Mr.  Fessenden 
deserves  especial  mention  ;  and  that  is,  he  never  indulged 


24         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

in  anything  of  a  sensational  nature.  He  had  no  taste 
for  legislative  pyrotechnics.  He  had  no  ambition  to  do 
something  simply  to  attract  attention  or  to  excite  com- 
ment. All  that  he  said  and  did  was  statesmanlike  and 
businesslike,  and  looked  to  some  useful  result.  I  may 
add,  too,  that  he  did  not  pretend  to  know  everything  or 
discuss  every  question  before  the  Senate.  Familiar  and 
thoroughly  conversant  with  most  of  the  leading  subjects 
of  debate,  particularly  those  relating  to  finance,  he 
spoke  as  to  them  only  when  there  was  a  manifest  pro- 
priety in  his  speaking.  There  was  no  parade,  pompos- 
ity, or  tinsel  about  his  speeches.  French  was  his  aver- 
sion, and  in  my  hearing  he  never  used  a  Latin  or  poeti- 
cal quotation.  Greece  and  Rome  he  left  with  his 
college  exercises  in  the  classic  shades  of  Bowdoin. 
Plain,  simple  and  unaffected  in  manner  and  habit,  so 
he  was  in  speech,  and  his  style  was  as  pure  and  trans- 
parent as  the  waters  of  a  New  England  brook.  When 
Mr.  Fessenden  arose  to  address  the  Senate,  it  is  not 
irreverent  to  say  that,  so  far  as  the  subject  under  discus- 
sion was  concerned,  he  was  generally  able  to  say, 
"  '  Let  there  be  light,'  and  there  was  light." 

Clearness  of  expression,  more  than  anything  else, 
distinguished  his  speech,  so  that  the  ideas  presented, 
instead  of  the  words  in  which  they  were  clothed,  filled 
the  mind  of  the  hearer. 

One  of  the  Justices  of  the  Supreme  Court  told  me 
that  many  years  ago  he  was  associated  with  Mr.  Fessen- 
den in  the  trial  of  a  cause.  According  to  the  agree- 
ment, the  judge  was  to  argue  the  law,  for  which  he 
made  elaborate  preparation,  and  the  late  senator  was  to 
state  the  facts.  Mr.  Fessenden  made  his  statement, 
after  which  the  court  said  that  nothing  further  was 


WILLIAM  PITT  FESSENDEN.  25 

necessary  on  that  side  of  the  case.  So  clear,  condensed 
and  convincing  was  his  presentation  of  the  facts  that  no 
room  was  left  for  argument. 

As  a  debater,  our  departed  friend  had  few  equals. 
Logic,  sarcasm  and  ridicule  were  employed  as  circum- 
stances seemed  to  require.  He  analyzed  and  dissipated 
an  adverse  argument.  Clearness,  vigor  and  acuteness 
characterized  his  discourses.  Saladin's  sword  was  not 
sharper  than  his  intellect.  To  describe  him  in  the 
promiscuous  debates  of  this  body  I  would  borrow  the 
language  of  Tennyson  : 

"  When  one  would  aim  an  arrow  fair, 
But  send  it  slackly  from  the  string  ; 
And  one  would  pierce  an  outer  ring, 
And  one  an  inner  here  and  there  ; 

And  last  the  master-bowman,  he, 
Would  cleave  the  mark." 

Common  sense  and  a  practical  view  of  things  were 
the  noticeable  features  of  Mr.  Fessenden's  statesman- 
ship. Poets,  orators  and  philosophers  may  rise  to  emi- 
nence by  the  display  of  a  brilliant  or  eccentric  genius  ; 
but  no  man  can  be  a  wise  or  safe  statesman  without  a 
large  endowment  of  common  sense  —  or,  in  other  words, 
of  that  comprehension  and  clearness  of  mind  which 
enables  him  to  form  correct  judgments.  Theories  and 
abstractions  have  been  and  are  the  bane  of  the  repub- 
lic :  the  less  a  man  charged  with  public  affairs  has  to  do 
with  them,  the  better  for  the  country.  Right  and 
wrong,  as  applied  to  political  affairs,  are  oftentimes  rela- 
tive and  not  absolute  terms.  To-day,  a  certain  policy 
may  be  right  ;  but  the  circumstances  of  the  people  to 
be  affected  by  it  may  wholly  change,  and  then  it  may 
be  wrong.  So  thought  Mr.  Fessenden.  Free  from  all 


26          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

Utopian  ideas,  he  acted  upon  men  and  things  as  he 
found  them,  not  as  they  might  or  ought  to  be  ;  and  his 
action  carefully  looked  to  the  interests  and  welfare  of 
all  concerned.  Some  have  said,  with  more  or  less 
truth,  that  he  was  conservative.  No  doubt  he  had  some 
reverence  for  time-honored  things.  He  loved,  like 
many  lawyers,  to  walk  in  the  ancient  ways  ;  he  had  no 
pleasure  in  the  work  of  'destruction  ;  he  believed  in  let- 
ting well  enough  alone.  But,  after  all,  the  records  of 
Congress  will  show  that  he  was  a  friend  to  all  those 
great  modern  reforms  in  government  that  have  redeemed 
and  purified  the  republic. 

There  was  a  grace  of  modesty  about  the  deportment 
of  Mr.  Fessenden.  He  had  none  of  the  "  I  am  Sir 
Oracle  "  way  about  him  ;  nor  had  he  any  of  that  offen- 
sive dogmatism  which  age  sometimes  arrogates  to  itself, 
though  he  was  frequently  emphatic  and  severe  in  the 
statement  of  his  views.  He  had  no  ambition  to  appear 
more  than  he  was.  Among  those  who  depend  upon 
newspapers  for  information,  he  did  not  pass  current  at 
his  real  value.  Keenly  alive  to  any  breath  upon  the 
purity  of  his  character,  he  took  no  pains  to  cultivate 
notoriety.  His  reputation  was  the  product  of  no  hot-bed 
appliances  ;  but,  slowly  and  noiselessly,  it  grew  strong 
and  high,  like  the  tall  pines  of  his  native  state,  whose 
heads  revel  proudly  in  the  highest  winds  of  heaven. 

No  little  was  said  in  the  lifetime  of  our  friend  about 
the  infirmity  of  his  temper.  That  he  was  irritable  at 
times  is  true  ;  that  he  suffered  much  from  physical 
debility  is  also  true.  He  was  a  nervous  and  high-strung 
man.  He  was  compelled  to  struggle  for  self-control. 
Charity,  however,  and  a  consciousness  of  our  own  imper- 
fections, should  draw  a  veil  over  this  slight  defect  in 


WILLIAM  PITT  FESSENDEN.  27 

one  otherwise  so  good  ;  and,  whatever  his  foibles  were  in 
this  respect,  "he  but  stumbled  in  the  path  we  have  in 
weakness  trod."  To  show  more  of  this,  let  me  state 
that  I  was  a  member  of  two  committees  of  which  he  was 
chairman,  and  only  once  did  his  anger  break  out  in  hasty 
words  toward  me.  Believing  that  "a  friend  should  bear 
his  friend's  infirmities,"  I  did  not  notice  the  matter, 
and  in  a  few  moments  he  came  and  in  the  kindest  man- 
ner expressed  his  deep  regret  at  the  unpleasant  occurrence. 
While  I  knew  him  he  displayed  little  fondness  for 
society  :  he  rather  shrank  from  the  fashionable  gather- 
ings and  gaieties  of  the  capital.  He  was  not  so  easy  of 
approach  as  some  who  are  less  agreeable  to  meet.  There 
was  a  dignity  in  his  manner  that  repressed  familiarity. 
His  intimate  associates  were  few,  but  to  these  he  seemed 
strongly  attached.  Fawning  and  flattery  were  foreign 
to  his  nature  ;  those  who  conceived  a  dislike  for  him 
found  their  own  reasons  for  a  change  of  feeling.  With 
much  truth  it  may  be  said  of  him  : 

"  Lofty  and  sour  to  those  who  loved  him  not ; 
But  to  the  men  that  sought  him,  sweet  as  summer." 

When  the  last  session  of  Congress  adjourned,  in  the 
seats  nearest  to  mine  sat  two  distinguished  senators,  now 
gone.  One  is  dead,  and  the  other  in  foreign  lands  seek- 
ing for  health.  Similar  in  many  respects,  they  were 
devoted  friends  of  each  other,  and  friends  of  mine. 
While  I  am  paying  this  humble  tribute  to  the  memory 
of  one  whom  death  has  taken,  I  cannot  forget  the  other 
and  older  friend,  stricken  and  away.  Unhappily  for  the 
country,  his  public  life  is  ended  ;  and  the  state  that  he 
so  long  represented  here  will  be  fortunate  indeed  if  it 
finds  another  equal  in  intelligence,  integrity  and  power 
to  occupy  his  place  in  this  body. 


28          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

When  the  sun  of  a  bright  day  declines  below  the 
horizon,  a  soft  radiance  lingers  among  the  shadows  of 
approaching  night  ;  and  so  it  is  when  a  good  man  goes 
down  from  a  high  position  in  the  world  to  his  resting- 
place  in  the  grave.  Streaming  behind  him  is  the 
effulgence  of  an  exalted  character  to  illumine  the  way 
for  others,  and  to  lighten  and  soothe  the  sorrows  of 
bereavement.  Where  the  departed  statesman  lived  and 
died,  the  bells  have  tolled  their  farewell  peals  ;  the  pall, 
the  hearse  and  funeral  procession  have  passed  and  gone. 
u  Ashes  to  ashes,  and  dust  to  dust,"  have  been  spoken, 
and  to  her  maternal  bosom  the  earth  has  folded  his 
mortal  remains  ;  and  now  we,  his  fellow  senators,  have 
met  in  this  chamber,  where  his  person  and  voice  were 
once  so  familiar,  to  celebrate  the  closing  scenes.  This 
is  the  last  of  ceremony.  Bowing  our  heads  to  the  will 
of  Providence,  and  striving  to  shun  his  few  faults  and 
emulate  his  many  virtues, —  to  the  affections  of  those  who 
loved  him,  to  the  gratitude  of  a  country  he  served  long 
and  well,  and  to  the  safe-keeping  of  impartial  history, 
with  faith  and  pride  we  commit  the  memory  and  fame 
of  William  Pitt  Fessenden. 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON.  29 


GEORGE    WASHINGTON. 


ADDRESS    UPON    THE    1OOTH    ANNIVERSARY   OF    HIS    INAUGURATION 

AS  PRESIDENT   OF  THE   UNITED   STATES,   DELIVERED 

IN    PORTLAND,    OREGON,    MAY    1,    1889. 


Everything  associated  with  the  name  of  Washington 
is  interesting  to  the  people  of  the  United  States.  His 
fame  is  one  of  the  imperishable  treasures  of  our  coun- 
try. To  recur  to  his  history  is  to  refresh  our  patriotism 
and  increase  our  respect  for  the  virtues  of  private  and 
public  life.  On  the  14th  day  of  December,  1799,  he 
departed  this  life,  "first  in  war,  first  in  peace,  and  first  in 
the  hearts  of  his  countrymen,"  and  his  influence,  since 
that  time,  has  been  a  living,  active  force,  little  dimin- 
ished by  the  lapse  of  time.  Washington,  after  being 
President  for  eight  years,  declined  a  re-election.  Con- 
strained by  the  force  of  this  precedent,  all  his  successors 
in  this  respect  have  followed  in  his  footsteps. 

When  General  Grant,  second  only  to  Washington  in 
the  estimation  of  the  American  people,  was  proposed  for 
a  third  term,  his  nomination  was  defeated  by  the 
example  of  Washington.  If  he  had  been  nominated, 
no  doubt,  upon  that  ground,  he  would  have  been 
defeated  at  the  election. 

Our  Constitution  contains  no  written  limitations  upon 
the  eligibility  of  the  President  for  re-election,  but  an 
unwritten  provision  has  been  incorporated  into  it  upon 
this  subject  by  the  example  of  Washington,  of  as  much 
force  as  any  of  its  written  provisions.  Here  is  a  beauti- 
ful illustration  of  the  moral  influence  of  a  great  and 
good  character.  All  of  our  Presidents  have  manifested 
a  desire  to  succeed  themselves,  and  some  of  them,  no 


30          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

doubt,  would  have  struggled  for  more  than  two  elections 
if  they  had  not  known  that  Washington's  example  was 
an  impassable  barrier  to  a  third  term.  Ambition  invested 
with  power  is  sometimes  stronger  than  conscience  or 
patriotism  ;  and  Washington  rendered  an  invaluable  ser- 
vice to  his  country  when  he  ordained,  by  his  example, 
that  no  man  should  wield  the  presidential  office  for  a 
longer  period  than  eight  years. 

Armies  and  navies  are  generally  used  for  the  govern- 
ment of  men  and  nations,  but  the  necessity  for  their 
use  would  be  greatly  lessened  if  the  effect  of  moral 
force  were  better  understood  and  appreciated.  Every 
human  being,  however  humble  his  sphere,  exerts  a 
moral  influence,  and  the  individual  influences  of  a  com- 
munity, combined  in  one  direction,  are  more  powerful 
than  penal  enactments  or  political  institutions.  Indivi- 
duals may  become  so  loved,  respected,  or  feared,  as  to 
make  their  names  the  synonyms  of  strength  and  power. 
I  was  greatly  impressed  with  this  fact  while  General 
Grant  was  President.  Reconstruction  of  the  Union 
after  the  war  of  the  Rebellion  would  have  been 
extremely  difficult  if  he  had  not  been  at  the  head  of  the 
government.  Ordinarily,  during  his  administration,  no 
force  was  necessary  to  control  the  disorganized  elements 
of  the  southern  states  ;  and  the  mere  appearance  of 
a  squad  of  soldiers  in  disturbed  localities,  without 
striking  a  blow,  was  sufficient  to  suppress  impending 
disorders,  because  these  representatives  of  the  govern- 
ment were  backed  up  by  the  name  and  influence  of  that 
mighty  man  of  war.  Washington's  personal  influence 
was  a  tower  of  strength  to  the  new  government  of  the 
United  States,  of  which  he  was  the  first  President. 
Whether  the  revolutionary  war,  without  him  as 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON.  31 

commander-in-chief  of  its  armies,  would  have  been  a 
success,  we  do  not  know  ;  and  whether  the  union  of  the 
colonies  could  have  been  effected  and  preserved  without 
his  personal  aid  we  cannot  tell :  but  there  is  no  doubt 
that  his  influence  was  a  powerful  factor  in  producing 
both  results.  When,  in  1798,  France  and  this  country 
had  made  all  their  preparations  for  war,  it  is  believed 
that  the  appointment  of  Washington  to  command  the 
armies  of  the  United  States  averted  impending  hostili- 
ties between  the  two  nations.  Napoleon  Bonaparte, 
then  at  the  head  of  the  French  government,  had  a  proper 
respect  for  the  abilities  and  influence  of  Washington. 

Nothing,  perhaps,  occurred  during  the  public  career 
of  Washington  more  trying  to  his  great  qualities  than 
the  whisky  insurrection  in  Pennsylvania.  While  he  was 
President,  Congress  passed  an  act  to  impose  a  tax  of 
from  nine  to  twenty  cents  per  gallon  upon  distilled 
spirits.  To  resist  the  collection  of  this  tax,  a  violent 
rebellion  broke  out  in  the  western  counties  of  Pennsyl- 
vania ;  and  at  one  time  seven  thousand  men  were  in 
arms  to  prevent  the  enforcement  of  the  act.  Our  gov- 
ernment was  in  its  infancy.  Its  powers  were  undefined 
and  untried  ;  and  the  whole  country  was  alarmed  at  this 
formidable  attempt  to  overthrow  its  authority.  Wash- 
ington, after  expostulating  with  the  insurgents  in  vain, 
determined  to  subdue  and  disperse  them  by  force. 
Military  forces  were  put  into  the  field  under  distingu- 
ished officers,  but  the  rebellion  maintained  a  defiant 
attitude;  and  it  was  not  until  Washington  decided  to 
take  the  command  of  the  government  forces  in  person 
that  the  insurrection  fell  to  pieces.  His  fame  and  influ- 
ence as  a  military  chieftain  was  like  an  army  with  ban- 
ners both  to  the  foreign  and  domestic  foes  of  his  country. 


32       '  ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

This  circumstance  brings  to  our  notice  the  vast  differ- 
ence between  the  public  opinion  of  that  day  and  of  the 
present  time  upon  the  whisky  question.  Then  a  slight 
tax  upon  spirituous  liquors  produced  a  tremendous  com- 
motion and  almost  a  revolution ;  but  since  that  time,  and 
quite  recently,  spirituous  liquors  have  been  subjected  to 
a  federal  tax  of  two  dollars  per  gallon  ;  and  the  tax  now 
upon  whisky  is  seventy  cents  per  gallon.  Not  only 
this,  but  some  of  the  states  have  absolutely  prohibited 
the  manufacture  or  sale  of  intoxicating  liquors,  and 
others  have  heavily  burdened  their  retail  under  high 
license  systems.  Some  litigation  has  grown  out  of  this 
state  of  things  ;  but  there  has  been  no  talk  of  revolution, 
and  little  or  no  forcible  resistance  to  the  execution  of 
these  laws.  Intemperance  prevails  now  to  a  deplorable 
extent ;  but  the  fact  is,  the  cause  of  temperance  has  made 
immense  strides  in  this  country  since  Washington's 
adminstration.  Then,  any  restriction  or  pecuniary  bur- 
den upon  the  use  of  spirituous  liquors  was  regarded  as 
an  infringement  upon  the  liberty  of  the  citizen  ;  but  now 
the  question  is,  not  whether  it  is  right  or  wrong  to 
restrain  or  prohibit  the  use  of  such  liquors,  but 
what  is  the  most  effective  way  of  producing  that 
result.  When  Washington  was  President,  the  use  of 
alcoholic  drinks  was  fashionable,  and  intoxication  was 
not  seriously  hurtful  to  character  ;  but  now  fashion 
smiles  upon  their  disuse,  and  it  is  disgraceful  for  a  man 
to  get  drunk.  Then,  the  family  Bible  and  the  family 
jug  were  placed  upon  the  same  shelf  in  the  closet ; 
but  now  the  Bible  is  laid  upon  the  family  table,  and  the 
jug  is  left  to  keep  company  with  the  barrel  in  the 
storehouse  of  the  dealer.  I  can  remember  the  time  when 
distinguished  senators  and  representatives  in  Congress 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON.  33 

not  uncommonly  appeared  in  their  seats  and  other 
public  places  in  a  state  of  intoxication  ;  but  such  exhibi- 
tions are  rarely  witnessed  in  these  days,  and  drunken- 
ness, to  a  great  extent,  has  been  forced  by  public  opin- 
ion down  to  the  scum  and  dregs  of  society.  In  the  early 
days  of  the  republic,  an  official  entertainment  in  Wash- 
ington City  without  the  "flowing  bowl"  would  have 
been  as  startling  as  a  presidential  dinner  in  a  kitchen  ; 
but  throughout  the  administration  of  President  Hayes, 
intoxicants  of  all  kinds  were  excluded  from  the  execu- 
tive mansion,  and  no  wines  were  served  with  the 
refreshments  at  the  inauguration  ball  of  President  Har- 
rison. Different  influences  working  to  the  same  end 
have  produced  this  change.  Institutions  of  learning, 
the  pulpit,  the  press  and  the  example  of  good  people 
have  co-operated  to  elevate  the  tone  of  public  sentiment 
upon  this  subject  ;  and  there  is  a  dawn  of  hope  that  the 
time  will  come  when  men  will  be  ashamed  to  sell  whisky 
for  a  livelihood,  and  to  get  drunk  will  be  as  disgraceful 
as  going  to  the  penitentiary. 

Accustomed  as  we  are  to  the  smooth  and  systematic 
working  of  our  institutions,  it  is  difficult  for  us  to 
understand  the  obstacles  that  Washington  encountered 
in  his  first  administration.  The  new  government  was 
an  unfamiliar  skeleton,  without  substance  or  vitality  ; 
discordant  and  jarring  elements  clashed  with  each  other; 
local  and  sectional  interests  clamored  for  recognition  ; 
the  rivalries  and  jealousies  of  ambitious  men  distracted 
the  public  councils  ;  and  it  took  all  the  wisdom,  courage, 
and  i;reat  influence  of  the  President  to  prevent  this  dis- 
order from  ending  in  disruption  and  disgrace.  Jefferson 
and  Hamilton,  though  .acting  together  as  the  constitu- 
tional advisers  of  Washington,  were  bitterly  antagonistic 


34-          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

to  each  other  ;  but  through  the  calm  judgment  of 
their  chief,  a  successful  administration  was  crystallized 
out  of  their  unseemly  contentions. 

Jefferson  represented  the  theory  of  a  limited  and  weak 
central  government,  with  the  largest  latitude  of  popular 
and  state  rights,  and  Hamilton  contended  for  a  stronger 
centralized  power,  and  a  more  circumscribed  control  by 
the  states  and  the  people  ;  and  it  is  not  improbable  that 
their  differences,  perplexing  as  they  were  to  Washing- 
ton, modified  by  each  other,  were  better  for  the  country 
in  the  end,  than  the  adoption  of  the  extreme  views  of 
either  of  those  great  men. 

Washington,  when  he  became  President,  had  no  pre- 
cedents to  follow.  He  was  made  the  pilot  of  a  ship 
entering  upon  an  unknown  sea.  To  perfect  the  Federal 
Union  ;  to  allay  discontent  ;  to  establish  the  credit  of 
the  government  ;  to  provide  ways  and  means  for  its  sup- 
port ;  to  liquidate  the  public  debt  with  an  empty  treas- 
ury ;  to  negotiate  treaties  with  foreign  powers  ;  to  con- 
cilitate  or  conquer  the  Indian  tribes  :  these  were  some  of 
the  tremendous  responsibilities  thrown  upon  his  hands 
with  the  office  of  President.  Guided  by  his  own 
good  judgment,  he  responded  with  extraordinary  suc- 
cess to  the  exigencies  of  the  situation.  His  policies 
of  administration  have  become  fixtures  in  the  govern- 
ment, and  would  be  more  useful  to  us  if  they  were 
more  closely  followed. 

Occasions  of  this  kind  are  generally  seized  upon  to 
depict  in  glowing  colors  the  material  progress  of  our 
country.  Washington  was  inaugurated  100  years  ago, 
and  the  first  thought  suggested  in  commemorating  that 
event  is  the  wonderful  growth  and  prosperity  of  the 
United  States.  Thirteen  feeble  states,  with  a  population 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON.  35 

of  three  millions,  have  grown  into  thirty-eight  great 
states,  containing  sixty  millions  of  people.  Washington 
necessarily  made  the  journey  from  Mount  Veruon  to 
New  York,  to  be  inaugurated,  in  carriages  and  on  horse- 
back, for  then  there  was  not  a  steamboat  or  railroad  in 
the  world.  Now,  our  immense  lakes  and  rivers  are  alive 
with  steam  vessels,  and  railways,  like  lines  upon  a  map, 
stretch  across  the  land  in  all  directions.  Our  commerce 
at  that  time  was  carried  on  in  a  few  sailing  vessels  with 
a  few  foreign  ports,  but  now  our  canvass  whitens  every 
navigable  sea,  and  our  flag  floats  in  every  port  of  the 
civilized  world.  Vast  regions  of  territory,  whose  soli- 
tudes resounded  with  the  war-whoop  of  the  savage  and 
the  cries  of  wild  animals,  are  now  beautified  and  blessed 
with  farms,  orchards  and  gardens,  and  all  the  improve- 
ments of  enlightened  husbandry.  Manufacturing  estab- 
lishments have  sprung  up  in  our  towns  and  cities,  and 
our  factories,  mills  and  furnaces  are  ever-flowing  fount- 
ains of  wealth  to  our  people.  Men  whose  fortunes  are 
counted  by  millions,  structures  of  architectural  grandeur 
and  beauty,  the  evidences  of  culture  and  taste,  abound  ; 
and  our  great  country  is  filled  with  the  glory  of  power, 
riches  and  prosperity.  All  these  things  swell  our 
hearts  with  exultation  as  we  look  back  to  the  early  days 
of  the  republic  ;  but  the  voices  of  the  ages  warn  us  that 
all  these  blessings  will  turn  to  bitter  ashes  if  the  moral 
advancement  of  the  people  does  not  keep  pace  with  their 
material  prosperity.  Ambition  and  the  love  of  money 
may  be  depended  upon  for  material  aggrandizement,  but 
the  moral  elevation  of  a  people  depends  upon  aggressive 
and  persistent  efforts  to  that  end.  Men  dig  and  grovel 
in  the  earth  for  gold,  but  they  must  climb  heavenward 
for  the  saving  virtues.  History  records  the  rise  and  fall 


36         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

of  many  nations,  and  it  is  not  difficult  to  determine  in 
a  general  way  under  what  influence  they  grew  and 
became  strong,  and  the  causes  which  led  to  their  decay 
and  downfall.  Much  as  nations  may  differ  in  their  forms 
of  government  and  other  circumstances,  there  are  certain 
elements  of  society  common  to  all,  that  work  for  good  or 
evil.  Bxalted  as  we  are  in  many  respects  above  the  con- 
dition of  those  nations  whose  greatness  has  departed, 
we  have  no  right  to  suppose  that  we  are  entirely  free 
from  those  elements  that  worked  their  overthrow  ;  for 
human  nature  has  been  essentially  the  same  in  all  ages 
and  countries  of  the  world. 

Empires  and  cities  that  aforetime  dazzled  mankind 
with  their  greatness  and  riches  have  perished  from  the 
face  of  the  earth  ;  and  where  great  armies  assembled 
with  the  spoils  of  conquest,  and  brilliant  courts  rioted 
in  pomp  and  splendor,  the  owls  and  the  bats  hold 
undisputed  sway,  and  serpents  hiss  among  the  half- 
buried  ruins.  Some  of  these  vanished  dynasties  have 
left  us  only  a  faint  glimmering  of  their  fate ;  but 
others,  with  the  wrecks  of  fallen  greatness,  have  left 
us  memorials  of  their  growth  and  decadence. 
L/ooking  back  as  far  as  the  light  of  history  will  enable 
us  to  see,  we  are  struck  with  the  close  resemblance 
between  the  life  of  an  individual  and  the  life  of  a  nation. 
Bach  seems  to  pass  through  the  weakness  of  infancy, 
the  fiery  energy  and  ambition  of  youth,  the  strength  of 
maturity,  and  the  decay  and  decrepitude  of  old  age. 
Every  day's  experience  teaches  us  that  a  false  system 
of  living  will  bring  the  individual  down  to  a  premature 
grave  ;  and  the  same  sad  fact,  as  to  communities,  is 
inscribed  upon  the  tombstones  of  many  departed  nations. 
To  carry  healthful  ness,  hopefulness,  courage  and  the 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON.  37 

strength  of  early  life  into  the  impulses  of  old  age,  is  the 
great  secret  of  true  living.  Few  are  so  ignorant  as  not 
to  know  how  this  may  be  done,  and  yet  comparatively 
few  utilize  as  fully  as  they  might  their  knowledge  upon 
this  subject.  Health  is  the  normal  condition  of  all 
living  things  ;  and  it  is  safe  to  say  that  premature  sick- 
ness, suffering  and  death  are  greatly  due  to  the  reckless 
and  careless  disregard  of  those  safeguards  which  nature 
has  provided  for  the  preservation  of  life  and  health. 

Nations  are  only  aggregations  of  individuals,  and  it 
is  as  necessary  to  take  care  of  the  life  of  a  nation  as  it 
is  to  take  care  of  the  life  of  an  individual.  When 
Washington  was  inaugurated,  our  country  was  in  its 
infancy  ;  and  a  hundred  years  have  not  only  brought  it 
into  the  vigor  of  youth,  but  into  the  immediate  pres- 
ence of  the  cares  and  responsibilities  of  early  manhood. 
Every  citizen  of  this  republic,  at  all  times,  and  especi- 
ally upon  occasions  of  this  kind,  without  losing  faith  in 
our  high  destiny,  should  note  the  danger  signals  beset- 
ting our  future  pathway. 

One  hundred  years  ago,  foreign  immigration  was  an 
advantage  to  the  United  States ;  but,  as  oftentimes  hap- 
pens, that  which  is  at  one  time  a  benefit  or  a  blessing,  at 
another  time  and  under  different  circumstances  becomes 
an  evil  and  an  injury.  There  is  a  tidal  wave  of  popula- 
tion from  the  old  world  pouring  in  upon  our  shores. 
Some  of  this  brings  health  and  strength  to  our  country, 
but  much  of  it  is  like  pouring  poison  into  the  blood  of 
the  body  politic.  Ignorance,  poverty  and  crime  are  being 
steadily  turned  loose,  by  the  ship-load,  upon  the  wharves 
of  our  seaboard  cities.  Licentiousness  and  liberty  are 
equivalent  terms  with  many  of  these  people.  Infidelity 
and  anarchy,  with  them,  stand  for  God  and  j^ood 

286766 


38         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

government.  They  vitiate  the  social  atmosphere  in  which 
they  live.  They  sow  the  seeds  of  discontent  and  dis- 
order. They  abuse  the  freedom  of  our  institutions,  and 
their  presence  here  is  a  perpetual  menace  to  the  peace 
and  good  order  of  our  country.  Obviously,  here  is  a 
great  and  growing  evil  which  it  is  easy  enough  to  see, 
but  for  which  it  is  exceedingly  difficult  to  find  an  ade- 
quate remedy.  Congress  is  the  only  legislative  body 
having  jurisdiction  upon  this  subject,  and  it  would 
seem  that  it  ought  to  take  radical  steps  in  the  direction 
of  /  protecting  our  country  from  the  offscourings  of 
Europe,  as  well  as  from  the  degraded  hordes  of  Asia. 
But  we  cannot  rely  altogether  upon  legislation  to  meet 
the  exigencies  of  the  case.  Our  duty,  as  to  those  who 
have  or  may  come  here,  is  to  civilize,  Americanize  and 
redeem  them,  if  we  can,  from  their  deplorable  condition. 
Rich  men  should  give  of  their  abundance  ;  the  pious 
should  offer  their  prayers  ;  and  those  who  can  do  noth- 
ing else  should  use  their  example  and  influence  to  con- 
vert these  people  into  good  and  peaceable  citizens. 

To  exclude  them  from  the  United  States  is  most  desir- 
able ;  and  the  next  best  thing  to  do,  is  to  inspire  them 
with  a  love  for  our  country,  its  laws  and  institutions. 
The  older  I  grow,  the  less  faith  I  have  in  the  compulsory 
processes  of  reform.  Penal  enactments  and  prisons  are 
necessary  for  the  protection  of  society  ;  but,  as  a  general 
rule,  the  criminally  depraved  can  only  be  effectually 
reformed  through  some  regenerating  influence  operating 
upon  their  motives  or  the  mainspring  of  their  actions. 
Forcible  measures,  under  existing  circumstances,  cannot 
be  abandoned  ;  but  the  sheet-anchor  of  our  society  is  in 
the  wisdom  and  charity  of  good  men  and  women,  and 
there  is  a  broad  field  for  the  exercise  of  these  virtues 
among  the  foreigners  in  our  country. 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON.  39 

Grecian  and  Roman  history  abounds  in  instructive 
lessons  to  us.  It  is  the  school  of  nations.  Greece 
occupies  but  a  small  space  upon  the  map  of  the  earth, 
but  her  greatness  at  one  time  overshadowed  the  nations 
of  antiquity.  Her  power  was  not  in  her  numbers, 
but  in  the  education  and  habits  of  her  people.  Every 
thing  was  subordinated  to  the  development,  cultivation 
and  discipline  of  the  individual.  Simplicity  of  life  and 
fewness  of  wants  were  the  national  virtues.  These 
conditions  evolved  a  healthy  and  vigorous  growth.  But 
a  change  came  over  the  people.  Ambition  looked 
abroad  for  dominion.  Faction  and  the  lust  of  power 
made  their  appearance.  Great  riches  were  accumulated 
by  the  few,  while  the  multitude  struggled  in  abject  pov- 
erty. Luxurious  habits  supervened  ;  indolence,  effemi- 
nacy and  vice  followed,  and  this  once  glorious  land  of 
philosophers,  poets  and  heroes  sank  into  obscure  imbe- 
cility. Rome  was  not  different  in  the  essentials  of  her 
history.  She  commenced  her  career  by  cultivating 
heroic  virtues,  and  grew  mighty  in  their  exercise.  She 
sent  forth  her  legions  to  war,  and  they  brought  kings 
and  emperors  in  captivity  to  her  gates.  Her  victorious 
eagles  and  imperial  decrees  ruled  the  civilized  world. 
But  the  tide  of  her  affairs  took  a  turn.  Ambitious  men 
arose  to  divide  and  distract  her  people.  Wealth  and 
corruption  debauched  her  government,  virtue  was  bar- 
tered for  gold,  and  her  decline  and  fall  is  the  greatest  of 
the  gloomy  pictures  in  the  book  of  Time. 

Our  republic  has  that  which  Greece  and  Rome  did 
not  have,  to  save  it,  as  we  hope,  from  a  similar  fate  ;  but, 
whether  for  good  or  evil,  the  fact  is  before  us  that  the 
greed  for  gold  and  great  riches  absorb,  to  a  great  degree, 
the  aspirations  and  activities  of  our  people.  Associated 


40         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

wealth  and  corporate  power  have  enthroned  themselves 
in  the  vital  energies  of  onr  country.  Our  trust  is  that 
God  will  protect  and  preserve  us  as  a  nation  ;  but  the 
beacon  lights  of  history  show  that  the  descent  is  easy 
from  wealth  to  luxury,  from  luxury  to  ease,  from  ease 
to  effeminacy,  and  finally  to  destruction. 

Theoretically,  our  government  is  a  representative 
government.  Those  who  make  and  execute  our  laws 
are  supposed  to  be  elected  by  the  people  for  that  pur- 
pose. Without  the  freedom  and  purity  of  the  ballot, 
this  theory  is  a  mockery  and  a  fraud.  Here  is  a  lurk- 
ing danger  to  our  institutions,  not  so  much  on  account 
of  the  men  who  may  be  fraudulently  elected  as  on 
account  of  the  loss  of  confidence  in  our  system  of  gov- 
ernment which  false  elections  are  liable  to  create. 
There  is  a  tendency  to  control  elections  by  the  use  of 
money  ;  and  it  takes  no  prophet  to  foresee  the  doom  of 
this  republic  if  the  time  ever  comes  when  the  public 
conscience  is  unmoved  by  the  buying  and  selling  of 
votes.  To  prevent  the  prostitution  of  the  elective  fran- 
chise by  bribery,  force,  or  fraud,  is  the  plain  duty  of  the 
men  of  all  parties  and  all  sections  of  the  country  ;  and 
indifference  to  this  duty  is  a  symptom  of  peril  to  our 
free  institutions.  Whether  the  choice  of  the  people  be 
wise  or  unwise,  the  conviction  that  it  is  the  result  of 
their  free  and  unbought  suffrages  upholds  their  confi- 
dence in  the  republican  system  ;  but  when  elections 
are  carried  by  corruption  and  violence,  the  thought 
may  be  suggested  that  something  better  than  the  mis- 
rule of  a  mob  can  be  found  in  a  less  popular  form  of 
government. 

Notwithstanding  these  evil  tendencies,  we  have 
grounds  of  faith  and  hope  for  our  country,  which  the 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON.  41 

fallen  nations  of  antiquity  did  not  possess.  Their 
knowledge  was  limited  and  imperfect  compared  with  the 
inexhaustible  stores  of  our  day.  We  have  the  common 
school  and  printing  press,  which  they  did  not  have. 
We  have  some  advantages  in  the  cljmate,  soil  and 
extent  of  our  country  ;  but,  above  all,  we  have  a  religion 
infinitely  superior  to  theirs  in  its  influence  upon  all  the 
institutions  of  human  society. 

I  do  not  speak  of  religion  in  any  narrow  sense.  I  do 
not  mean  the  religion  of  any  particular  church,  but  I 
mean  that  religion  which  recognizes  the  God  of  the 
Christian  and  the  Jew  as  the  Supreme  Ruler  of  the 
Universe.  When  Nineveh  and  Babylon  perished,  their 
gods  perished  with  them.  The  gods  and  goddesses  of 
Greece  and  Rome  live  only  in  song  and  story.  Idola- 
trous nations,  in  moral  character,  rise  only  to  the  level 
of  the  gods  they  worship.  Paganism  is  the  deification 
of  the  animal.  Theism  is  the  deification  of  the  spirit- 
ual. Our  God  is  from  everlasting  to  everlasting,  infi- 
nite in  wisdom,  goodness  and  power.  To  believe  in 
such  a  God  is  to  be  lifted  up  into  thoughts  of  his 
exalted  attributes.  There  is  a  preserving,  elevating 
power  in  this  belief  which  "spreads  undivided,  operates 
unspent." 

No  mind  in  all  Christendom  is  absolutely  free  from 
its  influence.  Some  may  say  there  is  no  God,  but  they 
might  as  well  shut  their  eyes  and  say  there  is  no  sun 
while  they  breathe  an  atmosphere  vitali/ed  by  its 
warmth  and  light.  Whatever  else  may  happen,  there  is 
no  doubt  that  the  prophecy  of  the  Psalmist  as  to  our 
God  will  be  fulfilled:  "His  name  shall  endure  for- 
ever ;  His  name  shall  remain  under  the  sun  among  the 
posterities  which  shall  be  blessed  through  Him.  All 


42          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

the  heathen  shall  praise  Him."  Washington,  in  his 
farewell  address,  said:  "Of  all  the  dispositions  and 
habits  which  lead  to  political  prosperity,  religion  and 
morality  are  indispensable  supports.  Let  us  with  cau- 
tion indulge  the  supposition  that  morality  can  be  main- 
tained without  religion.  Reason  and  experience  both 
forbid  us  to  expect  that  national  morality  can  prevail 
to  the  exclusion  of  religious  principle,"  On  the  30th 
day  of  April,  1789,  Washington  was  inaugurated  at 
Federal  Hall,  in  the  City  of  New  York,  and  the  first 
thing  he  did  after  taking  the  oath  of  office  was  to  repair 
to  St.  Paul's  Church  to  acknowledge  his  obligations  to 
God  for  His  goodness  to  the  people  of  the  United  States. 
On  this  centennial  anniversary  of  that  event,  it  is  fit- 
ting that  we  should  imitate  his  example,  and  render 
thanks  to  the  Giver  of  all  good  for  the  preservation  of 
the  American  Union,  and  the  prosperity  and  happiness 
of  our  people.  Our  gratitude  is  especially  due  to 
Divine  Providence  for  permitting  us  to  behold  this 
day. 

We  live  in  a  land  of  promise  and  beauty.  Our  state 
is  on  the  threshold  of  a  great  career.  We  are  rapidly 
increasing  in  population,  wealth  and  power.  Our 
thoughts  stretch  away  in  wonder  at  what  Oregon  will  be 
when  this  celebration  is  repeated  at  the  end  of  another 
hundred  years.  Nothing  is  necessary  to  stimulate  the 
material  progress  of  our  state,  but  eternal  vigilance  is 
the  price  of  moral  character.  Our  fields  may  excel  in 
the  fruits  of  the  earth,  our  mountains  unbosom  their 
mineral  riches,  our  commerce  bring  the  wealth  of  for- 
eign lands  to  our  shores  ;  but  all  these  will  be  as  dross 
if  they  pour  their  treasures  into  the  lap  of  a  debauched 
and  degraded  people.  Oregon,  with  all  its  advantages, 


GEORGE  WASHINGTON.  43 

may  aspire  to  stand  in  moral  comparison  among  her 
sister  states,  as  Mount  Hood  stands  among  the  other 
mountains,  robed  in  whiteness  and  purity.  To  put  our 
young  state  upon  this  eminence  should  be  the  great 
ambition  of  our  people.  Let  us  labor  to  this  end.  Let 
the  rich  man  give  his  money,  the  intellectual  man  his 
learning,  and  all  others  their  influence,  to  build  up  our 
state  upon  the  solid  foundations  of  intelligence  and 
virtue.  Money  and  merchandise  are  transient  and  per- 
ishable ;  but  this  is  something  that  moth  and  rust  cannot 
corrupt,  nor  thieves  break  through  and  steal.  Let  us 
do  our  full  duty  in  this  respect,  and  future  generations 
will  be  as  grateful  to  us  as  we  are  to  Washington  and 
his  compeers,  and  when  we  are  gone  we  shall  live  on  in 
our  influence,  and  our  good  works  will  smell  sweet  and 
blossom  in  the  dust. 

On  the  banks  of  the  Potomac,  in  the  City  of  Wash- 
ington, stands  a  monument  to  the  memory  of  him  who 
has  been  affectionately  called  the  father  of  his  country. 
Towering  above  the  dome  of  the  Capitol,  and  the  high- 
est of  all  human  structures,  it  represents  the  gratitude 
of  a  great  nation,  and  the  grandeur  of  a  great  life. 
Every  state  has  a  stone  in  that  monument,  indicative  of 
its  hope  and  faith  in  the  Federal  Union;  and  every  stone 
symbolizes  a  prayer  that  our  republic  may  withstand 
sectional  and  party  strife  as  this  majestic  pile  of  marble 
withstands  the  storm-clouds  that  break  upon  its  summit. 
To  us  and  to  all  posterity,  this  monument  makes  its  sub- 
lime appeal  always  to  bear  in  mind  that  the  only  way 
that  our  nation  can  be  preserved  is  to  transfuse  into  its 
life  the  patriotism  and  purity  that  graced  the  life  of 
Washington. 


44         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 


SALMON  P.  CHASE. 


ADDRESS   UPON    HIS    DEATH,   DELIVERED    IN    THE    SUPREME  COURT 
OF   THE    UNITED    STATES,    OCTOBER    23,    1873. 


May  It  Please  the  Court  :  I  have  been  charged 
with  the  sad  duty  of  formally  announcing  to  your 
Honors  the  death  of  Chief  Justice  Chase,  and  of  present- 
ing, to  be  spread  upon  the  records  of  the  court,  the  reso- 
lutions of  the  bar  touching  that  mournful  event. 

On  the  first  day  of  last  May,  by  the  adjournment  of 
this  court  for  the  term,  he  laid  aside  his  official  robes  to 
seek  that  temporary  repose  which  his  arduous  labors  and 
bodily  infirmities  seemed  to  require  ;  but  in  a  few  days 
thereafter,  to  the  great  disappointment  and  grief  of  his 
family  and  friends,  he  laid  aside  all  that  was  mortal  of  his 
nature  and  passed  to  where  the  weary  are  forever  at  rest. 
While  spring  was  revealing  its  new  and  beautiful  forms 
of  life  upon  earth,  he  was  carried  in  the  gentle  arms  of 
Hope  and  Faith  to  the  new  life  of  another  world. 

To  recount  the  public  incidents  of  his  eventful  career 
upon  this  occasion  would  be  to  repeat  what  is  as  famil- 
iar as  household  words  to  the  people  of  this  country. 
Suffice  it  to  say  that  as  the  governor  of  a  great  state, 
as  a  senator  in  Congress,  as  a  Secretary  of  the  Treasury 
and  as  Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court,  he  was  dis- 
tinguished for  great  abilities  and  great  devotion  to  duty. 

Conspicuous  among  his  many  claims  to  popular  and 
lasting  regard,  were  his  early,  continued  and  effectual 
labors  for  the  universal  freedom  of  man.  His  fame  in 
this  respect  will  be  as  enduring  as  the  love  of  liberty  in 
the  hearts  of  the  American  people.  To  say  that  he 
administered  the  finances  of  the  country  through  the 
late  war  of  the  rebellion  is  enough  to  establish  his  pre- 
eminence and  show  his  title  to  a  nation's  gratitude. 


SALMON  P.  CHASE.  45 

Jay,  Rutledge,  Ellsworth,  Marshall  and  Taney,  are 
the  few  imperishable  names  of  the  great  departed  who 
have  filled  the  chief  seat  in  this  court,  and  to  those  is 
now  added,  with  new  lustre  to  the  galaxy,  the  name  of 
Chase.  Posterity  will  know  of  him  through  his  public 
services,  but  we,  his  associates  and  friends,  know  and 
can  appreciate  as  well  his  private  virtues.  All  the 
influences  of  his  example  were  for  good,  and  he  was 
above  reproach  in  his  relations  to  society. 

His  physical  proportions  were  in  harmony  with  his 
high  intellectual  qualities.  He  was  dignified  and  grace- 
ful in  his  deportment,  and  especially  kind  and  courteous 
to  members  of  the  bar.  His  writings  are  remarkable 
for  their  clearness  and  force,  and  all  who  knew  him  know 
how  instructive  and  charming  he  was  in  conversation. 
Physically,  intellectually  and  morally  he  was  all  that  a 
chief  justice  ought  to  be.  Impelled  by  what  has  been 
called  the  infirmity  of  noble  minds,  he  pursued  with 
untiring  zeal  his  lofty  aims,  and  whatever  else  may  be 
said  of  his  aspirations,  happily  no  one  can  say  that 
they  marred  the  excellence  or  purity  of  his  personal 
character.  Early  in  life  he  emigrated  from  New  Hamp- 
shire, where  he  was  born  in  1808,  and  soon  after  became 
a  citizen  of  Ohio,  where,  unaided  by  fortune  or  friends, 
he  commenced  his  successful  public  career.  Inspired 
by  an  ardor  that  spurned  all  obstacles,  he  passed  onward 
and  upward  until  he  was  exalted  to  the  head  of  this 
high  tribunal  — a  place  that  few  men  can  ever  attain. 
Thence  he  has  come  down  to  his  grave,  crowned  with 
years  and  many  honors.  He  leaves  to  his  children  and 
his  country  the  record  of  a  life 

"Rich    in  the  world's  opinions  and  men's  praise 
And  full  of  all  we  could  desire,   but  davs." 


46         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 


THE    PIONEERS   OF   OREGON. 


ADDRESS  AT  THE   THIRTEENTH  ANNUAL  REUNION  OF  THE  OREGON 
PIONEER  ASSOCIATION,  AT  OREGON  CITY,  JUNE   15,    1885. 


Mr.  President  and  Members  of  the  Pioneer  Associa- 
tion of  Oregon  :  You  have  honored  me  with  an 
appointment  to  address  you  upon  this  occasion,  expect- 
ing, no  doubt,  that  I  would  contribute  something  of  the 
early  history  of  Oregon  to  the  recorded  reminiscences 
of  your  Association.  I  have  been  very  much  perplexed 
to  know  what  I  should  say  about  those  who  are  justly 
entitled  to  be  called  pioneers,  without  repeating  what 
has  been  said  at  your  former  meetings,  in  the  varied 
forms  of  narrative,  eloquence  and  song.  To  avoid 
gleaning  a  barren  field,  I  have  concluded  to  make  some 
remarks  upon  the  political  institutions  founded  by  the 
pioneers,  which  they  have  helped  to  rear,  and  under 
which  we  have  grown  to  be  a  great  and  prosperous 
community. 

Publicists  and  philosophers,  with  great  elaboration  of 
argument  and  diversity  of  views,  have  discussed  the 
origin  of  human  government  —  the  advantages  and  dis- 
advantages of  its  different  forms  and  the  respective 
duties  and  obligations  of  the  citizens  and  the  state. 
Society,  for  the  purpose  of  these  discussions,  is  resolved 
into  its  original  elements  ;  and  men  are  supposed  to  be 
in  circumstances  where  they  are  subject  to  no  laws 
except  the  laws  of  Nature.  Hobbes,  a  celebrated  phil- 
osopher and  eminent  writer,  contends  that  the  primeval 
state  of  human  beings  is  a  state  of  war,  and  that  gov- 
ernment is  the  result  of  an  agreement  among  them  to 


THE  PIONEERS  OF  OREGON.  4-7 

keep  the  peace.  Locke,  another  distinguished  writer, 
controverts  this  proposition,  and  holds  that  the  primitive 
state  of  man  is  a  state  of  equality  and  liberty,  and  that 
government  is  instituted  by  the  voluntary  agreement  of 
individuals  to  submit  themselves  to  its  authority.  Our 
Declaration  of  Independence  affirms  that  all  men  are 
endowed  by  their  Creator  with  certain  inalienable  rights, 
and  that  among  these  are  life,  liberty  and  the  pursuit  of 
happiness,  and  that,  to  secure  these  rights,  governments 
are  instituted  among  men,  deriving  their  just  powers 
from  the  consent  of  the  governed  ;  and  the  fact  is  now 
generally  admitted  that  the  social  compact  is  the  founda- 
tion of  all  just  systems  of  government.  Whatever  may 
be  true  of  savages,  the  early  settlers  of  this  country 
furnished  a  practical  exemplification  of  the  origin  of 
human  government  among  civilized  men.  When  the 
vanguard  of  civilization  came  to  Oregon,  it  was  a  most 
suitable  place  for  the  exhibition  of  man's  capacity  for 
self-government.  Vast  and  trackless  regions  stretched 
themselves  away  for  thousands  of  miles  toward  the  east- 
ern horizon,  and  on  the  west  the  Pacific  Ocean  spread 
its  boundless  waste  of  waters.  Northward,  penetrating 
the  citadels  of  eternal  snow,  and  southward  to  the  reign 
of  perennial  summer,  was  a  country  whose  native  wild- 
ness  was  only  disturbed  by  traders,  trappers  and 
employees  belonging  to  the  service  of  trans-Atlantic 
nations.  All  the  associations  of  early  life,  of  kindred 
and  of  home,  were  cut  off  by  a  practically  impassable 
barrier.  All  the  encouraging  and  restraining  influences 
of  educational,  religious  and  social  institutions  died  out 
upon  the  confines  of  the  distant  plains,  or  lingered  only 
in  the  recesses  of  a  loving  memory.  Surrounded, 
excluded  and  isolated  in  this  way,  Oregon,  with  its 


48         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

mountain  solitudes,  its  unshorn  meadows,  and  its  deep 
and  solemn  woods,  seemed  to  be  fitted  up  by  Almighty 
Wisdom  for  the  implantation  of  those  elementary  prin- 
ciples which  form  the  basis  of  a  just  and  free  govern- 
ment. Coming,  as  they  did,  from  the  different  states  of 
the  Union,  each  settler  naturally  brought  with  him  the 
prejudices  and  predilections  of  the  locality  from  which 
he  emigrated,  and  therefore  there  were  many  possibili- 
ties of  conflict  and  contention  in  their  thoughts  and 
actions. 

Various  motives  have  been  assigned  to  the  pioneers  of 
Oregon  for  their  action  in  organizing  a  provisional  gov- 
ernment, but  it  is  altogether  probable  that  different  per- 
sons were  actuated  by  different  motives.  Some  may 
have  thought  that  a  government  would  be  necessary  in 
case  of  a  war  between  the  United  States  and  Great 
Britain,  or  a  war  between  the  settlers  and  the  Indian 
tribes  :  others  may  have  thought  a  government  neces- 
sary to  protect  their  rights  of  person  and  of  property 
from  the  aggressions  of  other  individuals  :  but,  what- 
ever their  motives  may  have  been,  they  were  sufficient 
to  lead  the  people  to  the  creation  of  a  civil  community. 
Primarily,  in  the  inception  of  this  movement,  there 
must  have  been  a  meeting  of  two  or  more  minds.  Indi- 
viduals must  have  agreed  to  come  together  for  the  pur- 
pose of  interchanging  views  and  consulting  with  each 
other  as  to  their  future  action.  This  is  the  germ  of  the 
social  compact.  To  assemble  is  an  easier  thing  than  to 
agree  upon  the  resolves  of  the  assembly.  Personal  ambi- 
tion obtruded  itself  upon  the  pioneers  at  the  very  thres- 
hold of  the  discussion  as  to  the  establishment  of  a  civil 
polity.  To  organize  a  government  implies  the  investi- 
ture of  some  individual  or  individuals  with  extraordinary 


THE  PIONEERS  OF  OREGON.  4-9 

distinction  and  power  ;  and  human  nature  is  so  con- 
stituted that  it  is  not  probable  that  any  government 
was  ever  attempted  upon  earth  without  difficulties  grow- 
ing out  of  rival  aspirations  for  the  offices  of  the  govern- 
ment. Many  times  in  the  history  of  mankind,  these 
differences  have  been  settled  by  an  appeal  to  arms,  and 
some  individual  more  able  and  daring  than  others  has 
been  chosen  by  the  wager  of  battle  to  be  the  chief  of  a 
tribe  —  the  lawgiver  of  a  people  or  the  ruler  of  a  coun- 
try. Every  association  of  men  in  church  or  state,  to  be 
permanent  and  effective,  must  designate  some  one  or 
more  persons  to  execute  its  will  ;  and  the  selection  of 
one  of  a  number  by  his  associates  implies  confidence  in 
his  wisdom  and  integrity,  and  is  therefore  justly 
regarded  as  a  token  of  eminence  and  honor.  When 
the  little  band  of  state-builders  first  came  together  in 
1843  to  initiate  a  political  organization,  none  of  them 
wanted  to  be  a  Moses,  a  Caesar,  or  a  Cromwell,  but  more 
than  one  of  them  wanted  to  be  the  governor  of  the  pro- 
posed community  ;  and  for  this  reason,  with  others  of 
less  moment,  their  first  attempt  was  a  failure.  Subse- 
quently, however,  and  presumably  to  secure  harmony 
in  their  proceedings,  an  executive  committee  of  three 
was  appointed.  Theoretically,  and  under  ordinary  cir- 
cumstances, this  was  an  unwise  arrangement  ;  but  as  a 
temporary  expedient  it  may  be  regarded  as  the  exer- 
cise of  good  judgment.  All  governments  must  be 
organized  in  a  spirit  of  compromise.  Unity  of  action 
can  only  be  accomplished  by  mutual  concessions. 
Anarchy  is  the  necessary  result  of  a  stubborn  adherence 
to  individual  views  and  interests.  Devotion  to  what 
is  called  principle  in  matters  of  state  is  gene-rally 
praiseworthy,  but  sometimes  it  may  become  but 


50          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

little  more  than  a  display  of  extreme  obstinacy.  He 
is  a  statesman  who  knows  when  to  yield  and  when 
to  stand  firm. 

Law  is  indispensable  to  the  existence  of  all  organic 
bodies  in  nature  and  among  men,  and  therefore  it  was 
necessary  to  have  a  law-making  as  well  as  a  law-execut- 
ing power  in  the  new  community.  Simple  as  the  cere- 
mony seems  to  be,  it  is  a  sublime  spectacle  to  see  men 
voluntarily  take  upon  themselves  obligations  and 
restraints,  with  an  agreement  that  whoever  disregards 
these  self-imposed  duties  shall  suffer  punishment,  even 
unto  death,  if  the  circumstances  of  the  case  so  require. 
Nine  persons  were  appointed  to  make  laws,  and  this  lit- 
tle parliament  laid  the  foundation-stones  of  a  political 
edifice  within  whose  strong  and  symmetrical  walls  count- 
less generations  shall  enjoy  life,  liberty  and  the  pursuit 
of  happiness. 

Notwithstanding  society  is  the  result  of  an  agreement 
among  its  members,  individual  contentions  are  inevit- 
able, and  the  existence  of  a  disinterested  tribunal  for 
their  settlement  becomes  a  public  necessity.  Accord- 
ingly, a  judicial  system  was  devised,  consisting  of  a 
supreme  judge  and  two  justices  of  the  peace,  whose 
decisions  as  to  the  suitors  in  their  courts,  though  perhaps 
not  so  learned,  were  as  binding  as  those  of  a  Mansfield 
or  a  Marshall.  To  separate  the  executive,  legislative  and 
judicial  departments  of  a  government,  and  make  them 
independent  of  each  other,  is  one  of  the  great  safeguards 
of  freedom  and  justice.  Despotism  is  essentially  the 
unification  of  all  these  departments  in  the  hands  of  one 
man.  No  credit  is  due  the  Oregon  pioneers  for  any  dis- 
covery in  this  matter,  but  they  are  entitled  to  com- 
mendation for  adhering  to  safe  precedents,  when  it  was 


THE  PIONEERS  OF  OREGON.  51 

so  easy  and  natural,  with  but  few  people  to  control,  for 
one  person  or  one  official  to  absorb  an  undue  proportion 
of  governmental  authority.  Plato  says  that  "nothing 
great  is  easy,"  and  it  is  no  easy  task,  under  any  cir- 
cumstances, to  construct  the  framework  of  a  good  gov- 
ernment ;  and  the  persons  of  whom  I  amlspeaking  found 
many  obstacles  to  overcome  in  this  work.  Religious 
differences,  prejudices  of  nationality,  andlpersonal  likes 
and  dislikes,  were  potent  antagonisms  to  harmony  of 
action  ;  but  their  good  sense,  self-control  and  charity 
were  equal  to  the  emergency,  and  crowned  their  labors 
with  complete  success. 

Underlying  every  form  of  government,  there  are  cer- 
tain fundamental  principles  which  are*  as  necessary  to 
its  character  and  vitality  as  living  fountains  are  to  the 
rivers  that  run  into  and  replenish  the  sea.  Emperors, 
kings,  princes  and  potentates  rule  by  hereditary-,  or,  as 
they  impiously  claim,  by  divine  right,  and  without  any 
personal  or  direct  responsibility  to  the  subjects  ;  cabi- 
net ministers,  counsellors  and  courtiers  may  err,  but  the 
king  can  do  no  wrong.  There  is  a  high  wall  and  a  deep 
ditch  between  the  rulers  and  the  ruled.  Power  is  lodged 
in  privileged  classes.  Birth  and  not  merit  is  the  badge 
of  distinction.  These  conditions  are  essential  to  the 
existence  of  a  monarchy  or  an  oligarchy,  but  the  con- 
ditions of  a  democracy  or  a  republic  are  of  a  different 
nature  and  tendency. 

"  Provisional  "  was  the  name  applied  to  the  pioneer 
government  to  signify  that  it  didjnot  sustain  those  rela- 
tions to  the  general  government  which  were  applicable 
to  the  organized  localities  in  the  Union  ;  but  it  was  not 
expected  that  the  principles  established  or  rights  acquired 
under  thegovernment]would  be  disturbed  by  any  Federal 


52          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

or  other  authority.  States,  schools  of  doctrine  and  sys- 
tems of  religion  must  stand  or  fall  according  to  the 
principles  upon  which  they  are  founded.  Our  Saviour 
illustrates  this  idea  by  the  parable  which  represents  the 
foolish  man  as  building  his  house  upon  the  sand,  and 
when  the  floods  came,  and  the  winds  blew  and  beat, 
upon  that  house,  it  fell  ;  but  when  the  floods  came  and 
the  wind  blew  and  beat  upon  that  house  that  the  wise 
man  had  built,  it  fell  not,  because  it  was  founded  upon 
a  rock.  Builders  in  wood  and  stone  lay  their  founda- 
tions deep  and  strong,  and  the  builders  of  our  state  com- 
menced their  work  upon  the  enduring  principles  of 
equality  and  justice,  as  the  following  brief  abstract  of 
their  resolutions  will  show. 

They  resolved  that  no  person  should  be  disturbed  on 
account  of  his  mode  of  worship  or  religious  sentiments  ; 
that  the  inhabitants  of  the  country  should  always  have 
the  benefits  of  the  writ  of  habeas  corpus  and  the  right 
of  trial  by  jury  ;  that  they  should  have  the  right  of  just 
representation  in  the  legislature  and  of  judicial  proceed- 
ings according  to  the  course  of  the  common  law  ;  that 
no  man  should  be  deprived  of  his  liberty  but  by  the 
judgment  of  his  peers  or  the  law  of  the  land  ;  that  no 
man's  property  or  services  should  be  taken  for  public 
use  without  just  compensation  therefor  ;  that  private 
contracts  should  be  sacred,  and  schools  and  the  means 
of  education  encouraged,  with  freedom  of  discussion  and 
freedom  of  the  press  ;  that  slavery  or  involuntary  serv- 
itude should  not  exist  ;  and  that  good  faith  should  be 
observed  toward  the  Indian  tribes. 

I  feel  safe  in  saying  that  a  government  established 
and  administered  upon  these  principles,  with  their 
legitimate  amplifications,  would  be  the  perfection  of 


THE  PIONEERS  OF  OREGON.  53 

human  government.  All  the  institutions  of  man  are 
imperfect,  and  the  best  of  governments  is  a  compara- 
tive evil  made  necessary  by  the  weakness  and  wicked- 
ness of  mankind. 

No  problem  has  been  presented  to  the  political  world 
more  difficult  of  solution  than  the  determination  of  the 
proper  relations  of  a  government  to  the  religion  of  a 
people.  Statesmen,  scholars  and  churchmen,  from  the 
days  of  Constantine,  have  discussed  this  question,  some 
contending  that  it  was  the  right  and  duty  of  the  state 
to  take  charge  of  the  religion  as  well  as  of  the  educacion 
and  morals  of  the  people  —  others  holding  that  it  is  the 
right  of  every  person  to  choose  for  himself  his  own 
belief  upon  such  matters,  without  any  interference  by 
the  state  ;  and  this  discussion  in  many  instances  has  been 
carried  to  the  field  of  battle.  Assuming  that  the  religi- 
ous interests  of  the  people  are  of  more  importance  than 
any  other,  which  is  the  Christian  doctrine,  there  is  force 
in  the  argument  that  the  state  ought  to  provide  for  such 
interests  ;  but  experience  shows  that  a  state  religion  is 
apt  to  become  the  passive  tool  of  selfish  and  ambitious 
prelates  and  politicians.  Political  power  in  the  hands 
of  religious  bigotry  is  dangerous  to  human  liberty. 
Religious  convictions  seem  to  be  of  such  an  absorbing 
power  that  when  church  and  state  are  united,  magis- 
trates who  ought  to  be  impartial,  frenzied  by  their 
zeal,  make  decrees  of  intolerance  and  kindle  the  fires  of 
persecution.  Citizens  of  a  state  may  be  forced  by  law 
to  an  outward  conformity  with  a  prescribed  religion, 
but  the  state  cannot  by  compulsion  destroy  the  belief  of 
the  human  mind,  or  change  the  convictions  of  an  honest 
conscience.  When  the  pioneers  came  to  Oregon,  they 
found  no  church  establishment  to  which  thcv  were 


54          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

compelled  to  submit,  nor  any  dogmatic  creed  which  they 
were  forced  to  acknowledge  ;  but  they  found  a  temple 
prepared  by  an  Almighty  Architect,  whose  rituals  were 
as  pure  as  its  eternal  snows  and  as  free  as  its  varying 
winds,  and  this  temple  they  dedicated  forever  to  freedom 
of  conscience.  And  when  they  are  gone,  it  can  be  said 
of  them  with  more  of  truth  than  it  was  of  the  pilgrim 
fathers  : 

"They  have  left  unstained  what  there  they  found  — 
Freedom  to  worship  God." 

One  of  the  great  bulwarks  of  human  liberty  is  the 
writ  of  habeas  corpus.  History  affords  abundant  proof 
of  this  fact.  There  is  a  multitude  of  ways  in  which 
one  may  be  deprived  of  his  liberty.  People  of  all 
countries  are  liable  to  arrest  and  imprisonment  by  the 
edicts  of  arbitrary  power,  the  violence  of  popular 
passion,  or  the  machinations  of  wicked  men  ;  and  to  the 
end  that  such  persons  may  not  be  condemned  or 
punished  without  a  hearing  before  an  impartial  tribunal, 
the  writ  of  habeas  corpus  was  brought  into  existence. 
Once  it  was  the  practice  in  all  countries,  and  so  it  is 
now  in  some,  —  as  in  Russia,  for  example,  —  for  the  pub- 
lic authorities  to  seize  a  citizen  and  hurry  him  away  to  a 
dungeon  or  into  exile  without  any  hearing,  and  without 
his  knowing  who  his  accuser  was  or  of  what  he  was 
accused.  Some  spy  or  detective  reports  what  he  con- 
considers  an  act  of  disloyalty  or  delinquency  to  the 
government,  and  upon  this  secret  representation  the 
suspect  is  thrown  into  prison  or  banished  from  his 
country.  Where  the  writ  of  habeas  corpus  obtains,  the 
bastiles  of  France  and  the  towers  of  London  can  never 
come  to  serve  the  purposes  of  despotic  power.  No 
matter  how  humble  and  obscure  the  petitioner  may  be, 


THE  PIONEERS  OF  OREGON.  55 

the  court  is  bound  to  inquire  into  his  case  and  determine 
whether  or  not  he  is  lawfully  restrained  of  his  liberty. 
Cognate  to  this  high  privilege  of  the  citizen  is  the  right 
of  trial  by  jury.  The  necessity  and  value  of  the  jury 
system  has  been  the  subject  of  much  discussion  of  late 
years,  and  there  are  many  good  reasons  for  dispensing 
with  a  jury  in  civil  cases,  involving  alone  the  right  of 
property  ;  but  when  the  life  or  liberty  of  the  citizen  is 
involved,  its  utility  ought  not  to  be  questioned. 
Whether  an  act  is  criminal  or  not,  depends,  in  very  many 
instances,  upon  the  motive  with  which  it  is  committed. 
Men  of  practical  experience  in  life  can  judge  of  this 
matter  as  well  as  judges  learned  in  the  law,  if  no 
better.  Sometimes,  when  the  law,  by  its  strictness  and 
rigidity,  bears  hard  upon  one  who  is  technically  but  not 
morally  guilty  of  crime,  the  sympathies  of  the  jury  for 
the  accused  may  subserve  the  ends  of  justice  ;  and  again, 
the  good  common  sense  of  a  jury  comes  into  play  where 
guilt  seeks  to  screen  itself  from  deserved  punishment 
through  the  technicalities  of  the  law.  When  a  man 
charged  with  crime  is  tried  by  his  peers,  there  is  not 
only  a  recognition  of  equality  of  right  under  the  law, 
but  the  jurors,  in  the  spirit  of  the  golden  rule,  are 
expected  to  do  unto  the  accused  as  they  would  have  him 
do  unto  them,  if  their  circumstances  were  reversed. 
Criminal  prosecutions  are  conducted  by  the  state,  and  it 
frequently  happens  that  the  zeal  of  its  officers  oversteps 
the  bounds  of  right  and  duty  ;  but  injustice  in  such  cases 
is  prevented  when  the  empaneled  citizenhood  of  the 
country  holds  the  scales  of  justice  with  a  steady  hand, 
and  interposes  its  deliberate  will  between  the  weakness 
of  the  individual  and  the  power  and  influence  of  the 
government.  No  man  shall  be  deprived  of  his  liberty 


56          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

except  by  the  judgment  of  his  peers  or  the  law  of  the 
land,  is  a  declaration  that  sounds  the  death  knell  to 
tyranny,  but  rings  in  tones  of  silvery  sweetness  to  the 
ears  of  freedom. 

When  the  pioneers  declared  for  the  right  of  just  rep- 
resentation, they  recognized  the  vital  principle  of  repub- 
lican institutions.  Despotism,  which  is  the  absolute 
subjection  of  a  country  to  the  capricious  will  of  a  single 
individual,  is  unbearable  ;  and  democracy,  which  is  the 
absolute  and  direct  sway  of  the  people,  is  impracticable  : 
but  republicanism  is  the  golden  mean  between  these 
two,  and  is  intended  to  unite  the  vigor  and  efficacy  of 
the  one  with  the  safety  and  justice  of  the  other.  Every 
citizen  under  a  republican  system  has  indirectly  a  voice 
in  making  the  laws  by  which  he  is  governed,  and  also 
a  voice  in  choosing  those  who  shall  interpret  and  execute 
those  laws.  Man's  capacity  for  self-government  is  the 
basis  of  this  system  ;  and  if  this  fails,  the  whole  super- 
structure falls  to  the  ground.  Some  deep  thinkers  have 
expressed  doubts  upon  this  subject  ;  but  the  tendency  of 
enlightened  thought  everywhere  is  to  the  supremacy  of 
this  theory. 

Civilization  and  education,  however,  are  indispensa- 
ble to  its  ascendency  and  perpetuity,  and  therefore  the 
pioneers  resolved  to  encourage  schools  and  the  means  of 
education.  Intellectual  cultivation,  or  the  mere  acquisi- 
tion of  knowledge,  is  not  the  most  essential  part  of  the 
education  which  fits  men  for  self-government.  Scrip- 
ture tells  us  that  "he  who  ruleth  his  spirit  is  better 
than  he  who  taketh  a  city  ;"  and  in  so  far  as  individuals 
control  themselves,  they  can  with  safety  control  the  gov- 
ernment. Knowledge  is  power  ;  but  power  without 
moral  restraint  is  "like  as  a  lion  that  is  greedy  of 


THE  PIONEERS  OF  OREGON.  57 

his  prey."  To  cultivate  clear  perceptions  of  right  and 
wrong,  a  high  sense  of  personal  honor,  a  due  regard  for 
the  rights  of  others,  and  an  unfaltering  loyalty  to  law 
and  good  order,  are  the  saving  qualities  of  a  freeman's 
education.  Republican  institutions  are  not  in  danger 
from  pioneers  who  subdued  the  wilderness,  or  their 
descendants  who  beautify  the  lands  with  fields  of  grain, 
and  orchards  and  gardens  ;  but  the  disorders  of  the  old 
world  bring  to  the  surface  a  scum  of  population  which, 
drifting  away  to  these  shores,  are  a  constant  menace  to 
our  domestic  tranquillity.  Our  welcome  to  the  indus- 
trious and  law-abiding  is  not  inconsistent  with  a  vigor- 
ous repression  of  this  disturbing  element.  Republican- 
ism is  liberty  regulated  by  law,  and  is  as  much  opposed 
to  that  licentiousness  which  some  mistake  for  liberty,  as 
it  is  to  despotism  which  some  mistake  for  a  conservative 
organism. 

The  right  of  representation  is  the  right  preservative 
of  all  political  rights.  We  are  told  that  when  the 
righteous  are  in  authorty  the  people  rejoice,  but  when 
the  wicked  beareth  rule  the  people  mourn  ;  and  whether 
the  wicked  or  the  righteous  shall  rule  is  for  the  people 
to  say,  under  a  representative  government.  They  can 
have  a  patriotic,  wise  and  honest  administration  of  pub- 
lic affairs,  or  otherwise,  as  they  choose.  They  can  lift 
their  country's  standard  to  the  mountain  tops  of  great- 
ness and  glory,  or  lower  it  into  the  dark  valleys  of  shame 
and  dishonor. 

Society  cannot  exist  as  an  organized  body  unless  the 
rights  of  property  are  respected  ;  and  therefore  the  pio- 
neers resolved  that  private  property  should  not  be-  taken 
for  public  use  without  just  compensation  therefor, 
that  no  law  should  be  passed  to  impair  the  obligation  of 


58         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

contracts,  and  that  the  people  should  be  entitled  to 
judicial  proceedings  according  to  the  course  of  the  com- 
mon law.  Personal  liberty  is  carefully  guarded  by  the 
resolves  before  referred  to,  and  these  provisions  are 
intended  to  guard  with  equal  solicitude  the  rights  of 
private  property.  Lands,  goods  and  contracts  are  alike 
property,  and  alike  are  to  be  protected  from  the  aggres- 
sions of  the  government  and  the  invasion  of  individu- 
als. All  men  have  instinctive  convictions  of  their 
rights  to  possess  and  enjoy  that  which  they  acquire  by 
their  own  labor  and  skill,  and  this  right  is  recognized 
among  savages  as  well  as  among  civilized  people. 
Many  communistic  theories  have  been  proposed,  the 
most  notable  of  which  are  Plato's  Republic  and  Sir 
Thomas  More's  Utopia,  arid  many  efforts  have  been 
made  to  reduce  these  theories  to  practice  ;  but  the  experi- 
ments in  all  cases  have  proved  to  be  wretched  failures. 
Social  institutions,  as  a  general  rule,  are  not  made,  but 
grow  ;  and  anything  like  the  right  of  private  property 
which  originated  in  prehistoric  times,  and  has  been  per- 
petuated in  all  ages  and  in  all  countries,  must  grow  out 
of  the  natural  wants  and  necessities  of  mankind.  Con- 
sequent upon  this  right  is  an  unequal,  and  what  appears 
to  be  an  unjust  distribution  of  property.  Some  are 
immensely  rich  and  others  miserably  poor,  and  with 
this  state  of  things  many  are  greatly  dissatisfied  ;  but 
though  it  may  be  modified,  it  is  one  of  those  inherent 
conditions  of  human  life  which  cannot  be  prevented. 
Any  effort  to  make  and  maintain  an  equality  of  condi- 
tions between  industry  and  idleness,  energy  and  sloth, 
wisdom  and  folly,  would  be  as  impotent  as  an  attempt 
to  change-  the  equinoxes,  or  control  the  tides  of  the 
ocean.  There  can  be  no  peace  in  a  community  where 


THE  PIONEERS  OF  OREGON.  59 

private  property  is  not  protected.  Laws  may  be  created 
to  control  monopolies,  corporations,  and  accumulated 
wealth  ;  but  it  is  a  law  implanted  in  human  nature, 
which  no  legislation  can  overcome,  that  every  man  has  a 
right  to  enjoy  the  fruits  of  his  own  labor.  Society  would 
stagnate  and  sink  into  a  state  of  dead  uniformity  if  the 
incentive  to  action  which  the  acquisition  of  property 
affords  was  removed.  Associated  with  this  right  is  the 
institution  of  the  family  ;  a  laudable  desire  to  have  a 
permanent  home,  an  ambition  to  be  independent,  and  a 
feeling  of  devotion  to  country. 

Among  the  things  inducing  an  emigration  to  Oregon 
in  an  early  day,  was  the  expectation  that  each  pioneer 
would  become  the  proprietor  of  a  piece  of  land,  upon 
which  he  could  set  up  his  household  gods,  and  live  in 
peace  and  contentment.  To  multiply  the  landholders 
in  any  country  is  to  promote  the  strength  and  purity  of 
society  and  the  stability  of  government.  Laws  were 
passed  by  common  consent  to  confirm  and  protect  the 
rights  of  settlers  to  their  possessions  ;  and  under  these 
laws  the  wild  prairies  and  the  dark  woods  have  been 
converted  into  beautiful  farms,  and  the  homes  of  Ore- 
gon stand 

14  By  thousands  on  her  plains ; 

They  are  smiling  o'er  the  silvery  brooks 
And  round  the  hauilet  fanes  : 

Through  glowing  orchards  forth  they  peep, 
Each  from  its  nook  of  leaves, 

And  fearless  there  the  lowly  sleep 
As  the  birds  beneath  their  eaves." 

The  pioneers  resolved  in  favor  of  judicial  proceedings 
according  to  the  course  of  the  common  law.  They 
doubtless  intended  by  this  that  no  man  should  be  con- 
demned without  a  hearing,  and  that  parties  to  judicial 


60          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

proceedings  should  have  their  day  in  court,  with  a  right 
of  trial  by  witnesses  before  a  fair  and  impartial  tribunal  ; 
but  in  this  matter  it  is  probable  that  "they  builded 
better  than  they  knew."  We  hear  much  of  the  uncer- 
tainty of  the  law,  and  its  administration  is  not  always 
free  from  just  criticism  ;  but  as  a  scheme  for  ascertain- 
ing, determining  and  vindicating  the  rights  of  persons 
and  of  property,  the  common  law  system  is  the  best  that 
has  been  devised,  and — I  think  it  is  safe  to  say — can  be 
devised  by  human  wisdom.  Theoretically,  this  system 
proceeds  upon  the  idea  that  where  there  is  a  wrong 
there  is  a  remedy  ;  or  in  other  words,  when  one  man 
injures  another  in  'his  person,  reputation  or  estate,  the 
law  will  compel  the  wrong-doer,  as  far  as  practicable, 
to  make  reparation. 

Millions  of  people  inhabit  the  earth,  and  yet  it  is 
difficult,  if  not  impossible,  to  find  two  human  faces 
exactly  alike  ;  and  so  the  infinitude  of  cases  that  arise, 
to  which  this  doctrine  is  to  be  applied,  vary  more  or  less 
in  their  details  and  circumstances.  The  glory  of  the 
common  law  is  its  adaptability  to  these  cases.  It  is  as 
perfect  a  combination  of  certainty  and  elasticity  as  can 
be  made.  It  struggles  to  maintain  a  rule  once  estab- 
lished, but  yields  to  modification  under  imperative  cir- 
cumstances ;  and  when  the  reason  for  the  rule  fails,  it 
refuses  longer  to  recognize  the  rule. 

Common  law  is  the  logic  of  man's  necessities  verified 
by  experience.  Arguments  borrowed  from  the  civil  and 
ecclesiastical  law,  customs  whose  value  has  been  tested 
by  immemorial  use,  traditions  that  have  stood  the  test 
of  time,  treatises  by  men  of  great  and  varied  learning, 
and  the  decisions  of  innumerable  judges,  have  contribu- 
ted to  the  wisdom  and  justice  of  those  rules  which  are 


THE  PIONEERS  OF  OREGON.  61 

administered  in  judicial  proceedings  according  to  the 
course  of  the  common  law.  Our  code  and  statutory 
enactments,  for  the  most  part,  are  declaratory  of  rules 
resulting  from  the  processes  of  the  common  law.  Tak- 
ing into  consideration  its  comprehensiveness,  its  adapt- 
ability to  human  affairs,  and  its  certainty,  so  far  as  the 
fallible  judgments  of  men  can  make  it  so,  the  pioneers 
established  for  themselves  and  their  posterity  a  system 
of  jurisprudence  kindred  to  that  more  universal  law 
"  whose  seat  is  in  the  bosom  of  God  and  whose  voice  is 
the  harmony  of  the  world." 

While  both  of  the  political  parties  in  the  East  were 
bowing  their  heads  to  the  power  of  the  slave-holding 
states,  the  pioneers  of  1844  boldly  declared  that  human 
slavery  should  not  exist  in  Oregon,  and  that  good  faith 
should  be  observed  toward  the  Indian  tribes.  They 
sacrificed  their  race  prejudices  upon  the  altar  of  liberty 
and  justice.  I  believe  there  has  been  a  universal  acqui- 
escence in  all  of  the  conditions  of  the  compact  made  by 
the  early  settlers  here  for  their  government,  except  that 
determined  efforts  have  been  made  to  resist  and  over- 
throw the  inhibition  upon  slavery.  Among  the  first 
cases  I  was  called  upon  to  decide  when  I  came  to  Ore- 
gon in  1853,  was  an  application  by  a  colored  family  in 
Polk  county  to  be  liberated  upon  habeas  corpus  from 
their  Missouri  owner,  who  had  brought  and  held  them 
here  as  slaves.  They  were  held  upon  the  claim  that  the 
Constitution  of  the  United  States  protected  slave  prop- 
erty in  the  territories  ;  but  it  was  my  judgment  that  the 
law  made  by  the  pioneers  upon  the  subject  was  not 
inconsistent  with  the  spirit  of  the  Constitution  and  was 
the  law  of  the  land,  and  the  petitioners  were  set  free  ; 
and,  so  far  as  I  know,  this  was  the  last  attempt  at 


62          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

slave-holding  in  Oregon.  When  the  state  government 
was  formed,  strenuous  efforts  were  put  forth  to  make 
Oregon  a  slave  state  ;  but,  inspired  by  the  example  and 
sentiments  of  the  early  pioneers,  we  decided  to  go  into 
the  Union  as  a  free  state  — 

"  With  freedom's  soil  beneath  our  feet 
And  freedom's  banner  streaming  o'er  us." 

L,ooking  at  the  organic  resolutions  of  the  pioneers 
as  an  entirety,  it  is  evident  that  liberty  and  justice 
were  the  beacon  lights  of  their  policy.  All  their  sur- 
roundings were  favorable  to  an  expansion  and  liberality 
of  thought  and  action.  Immensity,  diversity  and 
beauty  were  the  characteristic  features  of  the  country. 
Mountains,  rivers  and  woods  were  of  vast  proportions. 
There  was  a  lofty  grandeur  in  the  scenery.  The  una- 
dulterated breath  of  heaven  sweetened  the  face  of  the 
earth,  and  all  the  forms  and  forces  of  nature  were  full 
of  freshness,  life  and  vigor.  There  was  no  pressure  of 
population  ;  no  crowded  cities,  towns  or  thoroughfares  ; 
none  of  the  strife,  tumult  and  rush  of  commercial  life  : 
everything  was  new,  free  and  unconstrained.  Natur- 
ally enough,  the  civil  polity  adopted  by  the  pioneers 
would  be  in  consonance  with  these  circumstances. 

On  the  14th  day  of  August,  1848,  Congress  created 
for  Oregon  a  territorial  government ;  but  the  organic 
act  expressly  provided  that  all  the  laws  of  the  pro- 
visional government,  not  inconsistent  with  the 
Constitution  and  laws  of  the  United  States,  should 
remain  in  force  :  so  that  while  the  government 
was  changed  in  form,  it  was  not  changed  as  to 
the  principles  of  its  administration.  Slowly,  but  stead- 
ily, the  population  of  the  territory  increased.  Every 
year  brought  additional  immigrants,  and  the  sons  and 


THE  PIONEERS  OF  OREGON.  63 

daughters  of  the  pioneers  were  entering  upon  the  stage 
of  active  life.  There  is  a  curious  similarity  between 
individual  and  state  development.  Boyhood,  when  it 
begins  to  appreciate  its  growth,  begins  to  be  ambitious 
to  throw  off  parental  domination  and  exercisC'the  privi- 
leges of  a  full  grown  man  ;  and  so,  here,  not  long  after 
the  territory  was  organized,  a  restlessness  under  federal 
restraints  soon  ripened  into  a  desire  to  make  Oregon  an 
independent  state  of  the  Union.  On  the  third  Monday 
of  August,  1857,  a  convention  of  sixty  delegates, 
chosen  from  the  different  counties  of  the  territory, 
assembled  at  Salem  to  form  a  state  constitution.  Many 
of  the  delegates  were  pioneers.  Some  of  them  had 
helped  to  organize  —  and  a  majority  of  them  had  lived 
under  —  the  provisional  government.  All  of  the  princi- 
ples upon  which  that  government  was  founded  were 
incorporated  into  the  constitution  then  made,  and  no 
doubt  will  stand  as  long  as  the  state  continues  to  exist. 
Most  of  the  pioneers  were  in  favor  of  a  simple,  unosten- 
tatious and  inexpensive  government ;  and  their  views 
prevailed. 

Considerable  effort  has  been  made  of  late  to  disparage 
the  work  of  that  convention,  and  a  proposition  has  been 
made  in  the  legislature  to  call  a  new  convention  to  frame 
another  constitution  ;  but,  while  it  may  be  admitted  that 
the  present  constitution  has  its  defects,  it  may  be 
doubted,  taken  as  a  whole,  whether  any  other  state  has 
a  better  one.  I  have  always  thought  that  the  salaries 
fixed  by  the  constitution  were  too  low  ;  but,  notwith- 
standing this,  its  workings,  in  the  aggregate,  have  been 
to  the  great  advantage  of  the  state.  Chief  among  its 
salutary  provisions  are  the  restrictions  which  it  places 
upon  public  indebtedness.  Experience  shows  that 


64         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

municipal  corporations  have  a  fatal  tendency  to  plunge 
into  debt.  Corporations  of  various  kinds,  and  especially 
transportation  companies,  fill  the  ears  of  the  people  with 
syren  songs  of  wealth  and  prosperity  ;  but  when  rude 
and  inevitable  reality  breaks  the  spell,  they  find  them- 
selves bound  hand  and  foot,  at  the  mercy  of  their 
charmers.  Thousands  of  millions  of  indebtedness  have 
been  piled  up  in  this  way  upon  states,  counties,  cities 
and  towns  of  the  United  States. 

To  pay  the  principal  and  interest  of  these  debts  makes 
taxation  unbearable,  and  the  courts  are  overwhelmed 
with  the  litigious  efforts  of  the  people  to  repudiate  these 
obligations  ;  and  some  municipalities  have  resorted  to  the 
desperate  expedient  of  dissolving  their  local  govern- 
ments to  avoid  the  demands  of  corporation  creditors. 

Our  constitution  prohibits  a  state  indebtedness  exceed- 
ing $50,000,  and  declares  that  no  county  shall  incur  a 
debt  exceeding  $5,000  ;  and  without  these  provisions, 
for  which  we  are  greatly  indebted  to  the  influence  of  the 
pioneers  in  the  convention,  there  is  little  doubt  that 
Oregon  to-day  would  be  floundering  in  an  unfathomed 
sea  of  insolvency. 

Neither  the  state,  nor  any  county,  city  or  town  is 
allowed  to  be  a  stockholder  in  any  private  corporation  ; 
and  this  divorcement  of  the  government  from  stock- 
jobbing interests  is  greatly  conducive  to  purity  in  public 
affairs.  State  banking  institutions  are  prohibited  ;  in 
consequence  of  which  we  have  not  been  victimized, 
like  the  people  of  many  other  states,  by  irredeemable 
paper  currency  issued  by  irresponsible  speculators  upon 
public  credulity.  Taken  altogether,  the  constitution  of 
this  state  is  adequate  to  all  the  purposes  of  good  govern- 
ment ;  and  if  it  is  administered  in  the  spirit  in  which  it 


THE  PIONEERS  OK  OREGON.  65 

was  made,  public  justice  and  prosperity  will  be  promoted 
and  preserved.  I  do  not  claim,  of  course,  for  the  pio- 
neers of  Oregon,  that  they  invented  any  new  theories  of 
government.  I  only  say  that  in  its  formation  they 
adopted  correct  principles. 

Washington  did  not  invent  morality  ;  but  he  is  none 
the  less  entitled  to  credit  for  his  exemplary  life.  Jeffer- 
son and  his  compatriots  made  no  new  discovery  when 
they  established  free  institutions.  Grant  did  not  invent 
the  art  of  war  ;  but  he  used  what  he  had  learned  effec- 
tively for  the  Union  cause  :  and  so  the  pioneers,  with 
practical  good  sense,  distinguished  the  true  principles 
of  government,  and  applied  them  to  the  exigencies  ot 
their  country. 

Responsive  to  reflections  upon  this  subject,  the  electric 
chords  of  memory  bring  to  our  view  many  of  the  inter- 
esting scenes  of  the  early  immigration  to  and  settlement 
of  Oregon.  We  look  through  the  misty  shroud  of 
departed  years  and  see  the  ancestral  homes,  with  fathers, 
mothers,  sisters  and  brothers  around  the  family  fireside ; 
and  there  is  talk  of  a  land  of  fertility  and  beauty,  far 
away  on  the  sunset  side  of  the  continent.  Young  people 
starting  in  life  are  apt  to  be  sanguine  and  romantic,  and 
no  sooner  is  a  settlement  in  this  distant  country  sug- 
gested than  there  is  an  earnest  opposition  :  the  difficul- 
ties and  dangers  of  the  way  are  pointed  out  ;  fathers 
remonstrate  and  mothers  plead  ;  and  the  thought  is 
made  prominent  that  the  ties  of  affection,  thus  severed, 
will  never  be  reunited  upon  earth.  Preparations, 
however,  are  made  ;  teams  and  provisions  are  procured  ; 
and  when  the  hour  of  departure  arrives,  there  are 
tender  words,  and  tears,  and  farewells  :  and  the  long 
journey  is  commenced  from  which  not  a  few  of  the 


66         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

hopeful  and  high-hearted  are  never  to  return.  We  can 
look  back  and  see,  in  the  dim  distance,  the  slowly 
moving  train  ;  the  wagons  with  their  once  white,  but 
now  dingy  covers  ;  the  patient  oxen,  measuring  their 
weary  steps  ;  men  travel-stained  and  bronzed  by  expo- 
sure ;  women  with  mingled  hope  and  care  depicted 
upon  their  anxious  faces  ;  and  children  peering  from 
their  uneasy  abodes,  and  wondering  when  their  discom- 
forts will  cease.  These  are  pioneers  on  their  way  to 
the  promised  land.  Moons  wax  and  wane,  again  and 
again  ;  but  day  after  day  the  toilsome  march  is  resumed. 
Sometimes  there  are  Indian  scares  and  depredations ; 
unbridged  streams  are  encountered  ;  rugged  ascents  and 
steep  declivities  occur  ;  teams  give  out  and  wagons 
break  down:  but  finally,  through  "moving  accidents  by 
flood  and  field,"  and  when  the  year  has  glided  into  the 
gold  and  russet  of  autumn,  they  reach  the  long-looked- 
for  end  of  their  journey.  To  some,  all  this  did  not 
happen ;  to  others,  more  than  this  happened.  And  there 
were  those  who  looked  back  with  sad  hearts,  and  remem- 
bered where  they  had  left  the  wild  winds  to  chant  their 
funeral  requiem  over  a  lonely  and  deserted  grave. 

When  the  pioneers  arrived  here,  they  found  a  land  of 
marvelous  beauty.  They  found  extended  prairies,  rich 
with  luxuriant  verdure.  They  found  grand  and  gloomy 
forests,  majestic  rivers,  and  mountains  covered  with  eter- 
nal snow  ;  but  they  found  no  friends  to  greet  them,  no 
homes  to  go  to,  nothing  but  the  genial  heavens  and  the 
generous  earth  to  give  them  consolation  and  hope.  I 
cannot  tell  how  they  lived ;  with  what  tools  and  materi- 
als they  built  their  houses  ;  where  they  procured  their 
plows  and  farming  utensils  ;  who  furnished  them  with 
seed  in  the  spring,  or  helped  in  the  harvests ;  or  how,  in 


THE  PIONEERS  OF  OREGON.  67 

their  isolated  condition,  they  supplied  the  numerous 
wants  of  family  life.  All  these  things  are  mysteries  to 
everybody,  excepting  to  those  who  can  give  their  solu- 
tion from  actual  experience.  When  I  came  to  Oregon, 
most  of  the  pioneers  were  living  in  comparative  comfort 
and  prosperity.  They  had  lands  and  herds  and  horses, 
and  were  rapidly  subjecting  the  native  exuberance  of  the 
soil  to  the  productions  of  civilized  life.  I  have  enjoyed 
the  personal  friendship  and  confidence  of  these  people. 
I  have  summered  and  wintered  with  them,  and  have 
been  permitted  to  share  their  generous  hospitalities. 
Much  of  this  comes  back  to  me  now,  like  the  dying 
echoes  of  distant  melodies.  I  have  been  in  close  rela- 
tions with  the  highest  dignitaries  of  state  ;  I  have 
been  much  among  those  whose  social  gatherings  glit- 
tered with  gold  and  diamonds  and  gay  equipages  ;  I 
have  sat  at  sumptuous  entertainments  in  palatial  man- 
sions, where  wine  and  music  and  flowers  enlivened  and 
beautified  the  scene  :  but  deeper  and  dearer  than  the 
recollection  of  these  are  the  memories  of  those  number- 
less times,  when,  weary  with  travel  and  chilled  by 
inclement  weather,  I  have  been  welcomed  to  the  warm 
fireside  and  substantial  comforts  of  a  pioneer's  home. 
There  is  a  great  mistake  extant  upon  this  subject. 
Many  people  imagine  that  the  powerful  and  rich,  those 
who  occupy  the  high  places  of  earth,  are  to  be  envied 
for  their  happiness ;  but  the  fact  is,  that  ambitions,  jeal- 
ousies, rivalries,  and  the  envenomed  tongue  of  slander, 
poison  these  apparent  pleasures  ;  and  those  who  know 
from  experience  can  testify  that 

"  '  Tis  better  to  be  lowly  borti 
And  range  with  humble  livers  in  content, 
Than  to  be  perke<l  up  in  Blistering  grief 
Ami  wear  a  golden  sorrow." 


68         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

Inexorable  time  is  thinning  the  ranks  of  the  early  set- 
tlers of  Oregon  ;  and  not  a  few  of  them,  after  long  and 
useful  lives,  have  gone  down  to  that  silent  valley  in 
whose  mysterious  shadows  "  the  weary  are  at  rest." 
Happily,  a  goodly  number  have  been  spared  to  meet 
and  greet  each  other  upon  this  thirteenth  anniversary  of 
their  society. 

Venerable  friends,  you  are  representative  men  and 
women.  You  impersonate  the  history  of  this  country 
for  nearly  half  a  century.  You  represent  that  hardy 
and  fearless  class  of  people  who  have  carried  the  ban- 
ners of  civilization  from  Plymouth  Rock  to  the  Pacific 
Ocean.  You  meet  to-day  at  a  place  replete  with  stir- 
ring associations.  Forty  years  ago,  the  legislative  com- 
mittee, as  it  was  then  called,  assembled  here  to  com- 
mence the  work  of  statutory  enactments.  This  is  the 
birthplace  of  Oregon  legislation.  Here  is  where  a  gov- 
ernment of  laws  for  Oregon  was  inaugurated.  There 
was  no  procession,  with  music  and  banners,  to  celebrate 
the  day  ;  no  salvos  of  artillery  to  distinguish  the  event. 
On  the  narrow  strip  of  land  below  here,  between  the 
eternal  rocks  overhanging  their  heads  and  the  ever-flow- 
ing river  at  their  feet,  a  few  plain  men  quietly  assem- 
bled to  commence  a  business  big  with  the  fate  of  empire. 
Now,  as  then,  the  same  rocks  lift  their  rugged  brows  in 
unchangeable  serenity.  Now,  as  then,  the  same  river 
leaps  with  foam  and  mist  and  muffled  thunder  down  the 
steep  declivities  of  its  bed.  Now,  as  then,  spring-time 
brings  forth  its  flowers  and  the  autumn  yields  its  fruits. 
But  all  the  members  of  that  committee,  your  old  associ- 
ates and[friends,  have  gone  forever  from  our  gaze. 

Your  lives  are  rounded  with  the  fullness  of  years. 
The  heat  and  burden  of  the  day  are  over,  and  your  final 


THE  PIONEERS  OF  OREGON.  69 

exit  from  labor  is  at  hand.  There  is  nothing  in  this  that 
should  disturb  your  composure.  You  are  only  yielding 
to  a  law  that  operates  alike  upon  all.  Kings  and  nobles, 
beggars  and  slaves,  are  borne  by  the  resistless  current  of 
time  down  to  the  same  common  destiny.  The  sunset  of 
a  useful  life  is  as  beautiful  as  the  sunset  of  a  cloudless 
day.  Whenever  one  in  his  old  age  can  look  back  with 
pleasure  upon  his  past  life,  he  may  look  forward  with 
hope  into  the  unknown  future.  Be  our  faith  what  it 
may,  a  voice  from  the  invisible  world  whispers  to  our 
reason  that  if  there  is  a  life  beyond  the  grave,  its  beati- 
tudes are  for  those  to  whom  it  can  be  said,  "Well  done, 
good  and  faithful  servants."  Human  life  has  its  varied 
aspects  ;  but  there  is  none  more  pleasing  than  to  see  one 
whose  years  are  full  of  duties  fulfilled,  awaiting  with 
calmness  the  closing  scenes,  and,  when  the  hour  of  his 
departure  arrives,  going  to  his  rest 

"Like  one  who  wraps  the  drapery  of  his  couch 
About  him,  aud  lies  down  to  pleasant  dreams." 

You  have  lived  through  a  period  productive  of 
great  events  ;  you  have  witnessed  achievements  in 
war  and  peace  which  are  among  the  greatest  known 
to  history.  Steam  has  revolutionized  the  modes  of 
travel  and  transportation,  and  electricity  the  transmis- 
sion of  intelligence.  Our  country  has  passed  through  the 
throes  of  a  terrible  civil  war,  resulting  in  the  overthrow 
of  slavery  and  the  establishment  in  all  our  borders  of 
universal  freedom,  equality  and  justice.  Our  constitu- 
tion has  been  radically  amended,  the  union  consolidated 
and  strengthened,  and  our  flag  covered  with  imperish- 
able glory.  You  have  seen  ten  great  states  added  to  the 
American  union,  and  more  than  20,000,000  of  people 
to  its  population.  When  you  came  to  Oregon,  there 


70         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

were  no  farms,  fields,  houses  or  barns  ;  no  gardens, 
orchards  or  vineyards  ;  no  roads,  stages,  steamboats  or 
railways  ;  no  villages,  towns  or  cities  ;  no  institutions  of 
learning  :  and 

"  The  souud  of  the  church-going  bell 

These  valleys  and  rocks  never  heard." 

But  now,  as  you  look  aronnd  you  in  any  direction, 
you  see  plentiful  and  fragrant  gardens  of  fruit,  trees, 
vegetables  and  flowers  ;  stretching  away  to  the  borders 
of  the  state,  you  see  the  cultivated  productions  of 
the  soil  invite  the  ripening  kisses  of  the  sunshine  and 
the  breeze.  Where  the  timid  deer  grazed  in  conscious 
freedom  and  security,  and  the  stealthy  wolf  prowled 
through  his  solitary  haunts,  you  may  now  see  the 
peaceful  husbandman  at  work  in  the  field,  and  little 
children  playing  in  safety  around  his  unguarded  home. 
You  have  seen  the  highway  and  the  stage  coach  sup- 
plant the  trail  and  the  cayuse  horse  ;  and  you  have  heard 
the  rushing  steamboat  make  the  hills  echo  with  its 
exultant  whistle,  where  aforetime  no  craft  but  the  softly 
gliding  canoe  vexed  the  bosom  of  your  waters.  Occa- 
sionally, when  you  first  came  here,  a  vessel  ventured 
over  the  Columbia  bar ;  but  now  magnificent  steamships, 
ocean-bound,  arrive  and  depart  from  your  ports  at  short 
and  regular  intervals,  and  the  colors  of  many  foreign 
ships  may  be  seen  at  all  times  floating  over  your  har- 
bors. Many  of  you  made  the  trip  to  this  place  in  a  few 
hours  to-day,  which  formerly  it  took  you  days  to  per- 
form ;  and  you  have  lived  through  the  progressive  stages 
of  travel  till  you  now  see  the  boundaries  of  your  state 
tied  together  with  iron  bands,  upon  which  you  can  ride 
with  the  fleetness  of  the  wind  from  the  Columbia  River 
to  the  Siskiyou  Mountains.  When  you  immigrated  to 
Oregon,  it  took  you  six  months  to  make  the  journey 
across  the  continent,  which  immigrants  now  make  in  six 


THE  PIONEERS  OF  OREGON.  71 

days.  Every  twenty-four  hours  the  iron  horse  comes 
thundering  into  your  state  with  a  train  of  cars  whose 
passengers,  but  a  week  before,  started  from  the  Atlantic 
seaboard.  Iron  and  steel,  steam  and  electricity,  have 
merged  the  states  of  the  Union  into  one  great  munici- 
pality of  thought  and  action.  Since  you  came  here  and 
found  Nature  undisturbed,  flourishing  towns  have 
sprung  up  in  every  part  of  the  state,  like  the  poet's 
Venus  from  the  sea,  radiant  with  life,  vigor  and  happi- 
ness ;  and  within  a  few  miles,  where  some  of  you  have 
seen  the  full-grown  forest  standing  in  silent  grandeur, 
the  tides  of  trade  and  commerce  from  different  parts  of 
the  world  collide  with  each  other,  and  thousands  of 
busy  people  contribute  to  the  roar  and  rattle  and  noise 
of  a  large  city.  One  of  the  early  resolves  of  the  pio- 
neers was  to  encourage  education,  and  this  has  been 
faithfully  carried  into  effect.  You  have  established  an 
excellent  common  school  system.  Your  wise  and  liberal 
provisions  upon  this  subject  enable  the  rising  generation 
to  drink  at  the  fountain  of  knowledge,  without  money 
and  without  price.  Seminaries  and  colleges  are  grow- 
ing in  number  and  influence,  and  the  numerous  church 
spires  in  your  towns  and  cities  indicate  a  vigilant  care 
for  the  religious  improvement  of  the  people.  All  these 
wonderful  changes  in  our  state  are  identified  with  your 
history.  They  are  the  developments  of  your  policy  and 
the  expansion  of  your  principles.  When  future  genera- 
tions, whose  approach  now  breaks  upon  our  ears  like  the 
murmur  of  distant  seas,  shall  come  forward  to  fill  this 
beautiful  state  with  millions  of  people,  the  work  that 
you  have  wrought  in  laying  its  foundations  will  be 
remembered  with  gratitude;  and  the  story  of  the  strug- 
gels,  sacrifices  and  successes  of  the  pioneers  will  always 
be  the  most  interesting  part  of  the  history  of  Oregon. 


72         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 


JUSTICE     SAMUEL     F.     MILLER, 

OF  THE  UNITED  STATES  SUPREME  COURT. 


ADDRESS   UPON  HIS  DEATH,   DELIVERED  IN  PORTLAND,  OREGON, 
OCTOBER  16,  1890. 


May  It  Please  Your  Honor :  I  fully  realize  in 
the  lengthening  shadows  of  three  score  years  and  more 
of  life,  that  the  friends  of  other  and  earlier  days  are 
falling  around  me  "like  leaves  in  wintry  weather." 
Justice  Field  alone  survives  of  the  great  men  who  occu- 
pied the  bench  of  the  Supreme  Court  when  I  was 
admitted  to  its  bar.  Few  of  the  men  who  were  in  the 
Senate  when  I  took  my  seat  there  are  among  the  living, 
and  only  two  of  the  number  are  now  members  of  that 
body.  I  find  with  startling  frequency  the  intelligence 
in  the  morning  newspaper  that  death  is  rapidly  narrow- 
ing the  circle  of  my  associates  in  public  life,  but  nothing 
of  the  kind  has  caused  me  such  unaffected  sorrow  as  the 
announcement  that  Justice  Miller  was  dead.  I  knew 
him  well  and  intimately  for  quite  forty  years.  When 
he  came  to  Iowa  in  1850,  he  located  in  the  district  of 
which  I  was  then  judge,  and  though  he  had  been 
admitted  to  the  bar  in  Kentucky,  where  he  was  born 
and  educated,  he  commenced  his  great  professional 
career  in  my  court. 

I  remember  distinctly  that  after  I  had  seen  and  heard 
him  a  few  times  in  the  trial  of  cases,  I  made  up  my 
mind  that  he  was  a  man  of  splendid  abilities.  He  was 
not  showy  or  sentimental  :  he  made  no  pretensions  to 
oratory  :  but  he  excelled  in  intellectual  vigor  and  agility, 
and  was  remarkably  clear  and  incisive  in  argument. 


JUSTICE  SAMUEL  F.  MILLER.  73 

Our  relations  soon  ripened  into  a  warm  personal  friend- 
ship ;  and  I  was  more  than  pleased  when  by  the  appoint- 
ment of  President  Lincoln  he  was  made  a  justice  of 
the  Supreme  Court,  both  because  I  was  happy  to  see  a 
friend  of  mine  so  honored,  and  because  I  knew  him  to 
be  fit  in  every  way  for  that  exalted  position.  When  I 
went  to  Washington  in  1864,  our  former  social  relations 
were  revived  ;  and  the  hours  I  spent  at  his  hospitable 
home  in  that  city  with  him  and  his  amiable  family  are 
among  the  most  pleasant  reminiscences  of  my  public 
life.  When  the  office  of  Chief-Justice  became  vacant 
by  the  death  of  ex-Governor  Chase,  it  became  my 
duty  to  consult  the  President  as  to  his  successor.  To 
that  end,  when  the  pressure  upon  the  Department  of 
Justice  for  the  different  candidates  seemed  to  require 
action,  I  visited  General  Grant  at  Long  Branch,  where 
he  was  then  sojourning,  and  took  with  him  a  memorable 
ride,  in  which  we  discussed  in  all  points  of  view  the  mat- 
ter of  appointing  a  Chief-Justice.  I  told  him  I  was  in 
favor  of  the  appointment  of  Justice  Miller,  for  reasons 
then  apparent  to  me,  which  need  not  here  be  repeated, 
for  his  judicial  career  has  made  them  known  to  all  the 
people  of  this  country.  The  President  replied  that  he 
had  reflected  no  little  upon  the  subject,  and  had  decided 
not  to  make  an  appointment  from  the  bench.  He 
expressed  the  highest  admiration  for  Justice  Miller,  but 
said,  in  substance,  that  Justice  Swayne  was  a  judge  of 
great  experience  and  abilities,  and  the  senior  of  Justice 
Miller  upon  the  bench,  and  he  could  give  no  good  rea- 
son lor  subordinating  his  claims  to  those  of  Justice  Miller. 
He  spoke  in  high  terms  of  Justices  Strong  and  Bradley, 
and  declared  he  was  quite  unable  and  altogether  unwill- 
ing to  decide  which  one  of  these  distinguished  jurists 


74         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

was  entitled  to  the  preference.  He  also  expressed 
doubts  as  to  the  expediency  of  promoting  a  justice 
to  the  chief  justiceship,  "for,"  said  he,  "if  that  policy 
is  adopted,  when  the  chief  dies,  his  associates  will 
become  rival  candidates  for  the  place,  and  thus  feelings 
might  be  engendered  that  would  disturb  the  harmony 
and  affect  unfavorably  the  efficiency  of  the  court."  He 
gave  as  another  reason  for  his  decision  that  there  was 
no  precedent  for  promoting  an  associate  justice  to  the 
head  of  the  court,  and  he  was  not  disposed  to  innovate 
upon  what  he  considered  a  salutary  practice  ;  and  so, 
with  these  kind  and  gentle  words,  were  nipped  as  with 
a  killing  frost  the  budding  hopes  of  more  than  one 
aspirant  for  the  Chief-Justiceship  of  the  United  States. 
Some  of  Justice  Miller's  friends  in  the  Senate 
opposed  my  confirmation  as  Chief-Justice,  because 
they  thought  that  I  had  not  favored  his  appoint- 
ment as  they  expected  I  would,  but  had  worked 
for  my  own  interests  ;  but  the  fact  is,  I  never  exchanged 
a  word  with  the  President  about  my  nomination, 
nor  did  I  have  an  intimation  from  any  source  that 
it  would  be  made,  before  my  name  was  sent  to  the 
Senate.  Now,  when  flattery  cannot  "soothe  the  dull, 
cold  ear  of  death,"  I  can  say  that,  if  my  views  had 
obtained,  Samuel  F.  Miller  would  have  occupied,  and 
in  my  judgment  adorned,  the  seat  made  illustrious  by 
Marshall  and  Taney. 

Twenty-nine  eventful  years  have  passed  into  history 
since  Justice  Miller  ascended  the  bench  of  the  Supreme 
Court.  He  was  brought  into  judicial  life  soon  after  the 
commencement  of  our  civil  war.  Lincoln  and  Miller, 
both  Kentuckians,  were  alike  loyal  to  the  govern- 
ment. Some  of  the  latter's  associates  were  the  subjects 


JUSTICE  SAMUEL  F.  MILLER.  75 

of  public  distrust,  but  the  effulgence  of  his  patriotism 
was  never  dimmed  by  the  shadow  of  suspicion.  Sixty- 
four  volumes  of  the  Supreme  Court  Reports  contain 
opinions  by  Justice  Miller  ;  and  he  participated  in  more 
than  10,000  decisions  by  that  court  Among  these  were 
judicial  problems  as  deep  as  the  foundations  of  govern- 
ment, and  as  difficult  as  the  confusion  and  crash  of  war 
could  make.  Amendments  to  the  Constitution  were  to 
be  construed  ;  the  validity  and  effect  of  congressional 
legislation  growing  out  of  the  war  were  to  be  determined  ; 
the  rights  of  states  emerging  from  rebellion  were  to 
be  established  ;  and  these  profound  and  complicated  ques- 
tions involved  considerations  affecting  the  permanency 
and  future  peace  of  the  Union.  Party  hate  and  sec- 
tional strife  disturbed  the  other  departments  of  the  gen- 
eral government,  but  they  approached  with  "bated 
breath  and  whispering  humbleness  "  the  threshold  of 
the  Supreme  Court. 

Justice  Miller  was  a  positive  force  in  the  great  tri- 
bunal of  which  he  was  a  member.  His  influence  there 
was  greater  than  it  appeared  to  be.  His  sturdy  will- 
power invigorated  his  opinions.  Justice  Miller  wrote 
with  a  pen  of  power  and  light.  He  did  not  have  the 
scientific  knowledge  of  Justice  Bradley,  or  the  technical 
learning  of  Justice  Strong,  or  the  scholarly  accomplish- 
ments of  Justice  Field  ;  but  there  was  a  rugged  strength 
in  his  reasoning,  and  a  compactness,  clearness  and  force 
in  his  style,  convincing  the  reader  of  his  opinions  that 
nature  had  more  than  made  up  for  any  lack  of  adventi- 
tious acquirements.  There  was  nothing  diminutive 
about  Justice  Miller.  He  had  a  big,  active  brain,  with 
a  warm,  impulsive  heart  and  a  large,  strong  body.  He 
was  sometimes  a  little  impatient  upon  the  bench,  due  to 


76          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

the  disposition  of  his  mind  to  drive  through  preliminar- 
ies and  technicalities  to  the  decisive  points  of  a  case  ; 
but  no  man  was  more  amiable  or  agreeable  in  all  the 
relations  of  social  life.  His  services  to  his  country  can- 
not be  too  highly  estimated.  Their  influence  will  be 
for  good  as  long  as  patriotism  and  justice  are  enthroned 
in  American  jurisprudence.  His  private  character  was 
without  spot  or  blemish.  When  such  men  as  Justice 
Miller  bear  sway,  the  people  rejoice.  He  fell  asleep  like 
a  strong  man  lying  down  to  rest  in  the  midst  of  his 
labors.  Going  into  the  hands  of  a  merciful  Father,  he 
has  left  to  his  family  a  legacy  of  sweet  and  fragrant 
memories  ;  to  his  professional  brethren  a  lofty  and 
inspiring  example  ;  and  to  all,  the  solemn  admonition 
that  "  the  paths  of  glory  lead  but  to  the  grave." 


OUR  VETERANS.  77 


OUR  VETERANS. 


ADDRESS    AT     THE    VETERANS'    REUNION,    McMIXNVILLE,    OREGON. 
JULY    10,    1887. 


Mr.  President  and  Fellow  Citizens  :  The  Grand 
Army  of  the  Republic  is  a  name  suggestive  of  the 
whole  military  history  of  the  United  States.  Like  a 
panoramic  painting,  it  brings  into  a  single  view  the 
prominent  struggles  and  successes  of  that  history.  Our 
republic  was  born  amid  the  throes  of  the  revolutionary 
war.  It  was  exalted  and  extended  by  the  war  of  1812 
and  the  war  with  Mexico  ;  and  was  preserved  and  per- 
petuated by  the  war  to  suppress  the  rebellion. 

Though  the  organization  now  bearing  the  name  of 
the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  is  of  comparatively 
recent  date,  it  is  the  fitting  and  rightful  representative 
of  the  men  who  fought  in  all  these  wars  under  the  flag 
of  the  American  Union.  Whenever  the  ranks  of  those 
enrolled  to  defend  their  country  have  been  thinned  by 
death  or  otherwise,  others  have  cheerfully  stepped  for- 
ward to  take  their  places  ;  so  that,  in  a  national  sense, 
we  have  always  had  a  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic 
since  the  field  of  Lexington,  "where  the  embattled 
farmers  stood,  and  fired  the  shots  heard  round  the  world." 
Napoleon's  legions  were  styled  the  Grand  Army  on 
account  of  their  magnificent  proportions  and  brilliant 
achievements  ;  but  though  the  Grand  Army  of  our 
Republic  has  da/zled  less  by  its  appearance  and  exploits, 
it  is  better  entitled  than  the  great  army  of  Xapolcon 
to  the  appellation  of  "Grand,"  upon  another  ground: 
for  while  that  army,  frequently  victorious,  was  finally 


78         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

defeated  and  destroyed,  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Repub- 
lic, though  sometimes  defeated,  always  won  the  final 
and  decisive  battles.  When  our  fathers  threw  off  the 
yoke  of  British  domination,  they  organized  the  first 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  with  but  little,  it  is  true, 
of  the  "pomp  and  circumstance  of  glorious  war;" 
but,  nevertheless,  it  was  a  grand  army,  for  it  was  made 
up  of  men  who  were  ready  and  willing  to  die  for  their 
country.  All  of  the  men,  or  nearly  all,  who  belonged 
to  that  grand  army,  have  gone  to  their  eternal  camping 
grounds  ;  but  they  have  left  a  glorious  record  to  inspire 
the  pride  and  ambition  of  their  descendants.  They 
came  from  the  farms,  workshops  and  firesides  of  peace- 
ful life,  as  their  successors  in  the  Grand  Army  of  the 
Republic  have  generally  come.  They  were  not  enlisted 
or  drafted  with  bands  of  music,  banners  and  parade  ;  but 
each  man,  self-called,  went  forth  in  home-made  cloth- 
ing, with  his  household  firelock,  to  fight  the  well-drilled 
and  well-equipped  forces  of  the  British  empire.  Their 
sufferings  and  privations  were  only  equaled  by  their 
endurance  and  valor.  Their  arms  and  ammunition  were 
poor  and  scarce  ;  their  supplies  scanty.  Hungry  and 
thirsty,  they  exposed  themselves  to  the  heat  of  summer, 
with  little  or  no  shelter  to  protect  them  from  the  storms 
of  winter.  They  rested  without  blankets  or  tents,  and 
marched  without  shoes,  sometimes  leaving  the  bloody 
footprints  of  their  bare  feet  upon  the  frozen  ground  ;  but 
for  seven  years  they  maintained  the  unequal  contest, 
until,  after  the  bloody  fields  of  Bunker  Hill,  Long  Island, 
Saratoga,  Trenton,  and  other  battles,  the  scepter  of 
British  power  lay  broken  at  their  feet  upon  the  plains  of 
Yorktown.  Thus  the  first  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic 
triumphed,  and  won  the  independence  of  their  country. 


OUR  VETERANS.  79 

When,  in  1812,  Great  Britain  asserted  and  exercised 
the  right  to  search  our  vessels  upon  the  high  seas,  and 
impress  sailors  upon  our  ships  into  her  service,  war 
became  necessary  to  vindicate  the  dignity  of  our  flag 
and  the  rights  of  our  sailors  ;  and  then  again  the  Grand 
Army  of  the  Republic  took  the  field.  Farmers, 
mechanics,  and  men  of  all  trades  rallied  round  the  flag, 
and,  after  many  well-fought  battles,  ended  the  war  by 
the  splendid  victory  at  New  Orleans.  No  right  to 
search  our  ships  has  since  been  asserted  by  the  British 
government,  and  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  won 
again  the  final  victory. 

Disputes  having  arisen  between  the  United  States  and 
Mexico,  as  to  that  part  of  Texas  lying  between  the 
Nueces  and  Rio  Grande  rivers,  an  appeal  to  arms  became 
necessary  to  settle  the  question.  Men  who  fought  in 
the  war  of  1812,  and  their  sons,  flocked  to  the  standard 
of  their  country,  and  in  a  blaze  of  glory,  reflected  from 
the  victorious  fields  of  Buena  Vista,  Cerro  Gordo,  Mon- 
terey, and  Chapultepec,  planted  the  stars  and  stripes 
upon  the  gilded  domes  of  the  Mexican  capital.  Cali- 
fornia and  New  Mexico  were  ceded  to  the  United  States, 
and  the  Rio  Grande  became  the  western  boundary  of 
Texas,  according  to  our  claim  ;  and  the  Grand  Army  of 
the  Republic,  for  the  third  time,  "  conquered  a  peace." 

All  these  wars,  however,  sink  into  insignificance,  so 
far  as  the  numbers  engaged,  the  magnitude  of  the 
battles,  the  loss  in  killed  and  wounded,  and  the  expen- 
diture of  treasure  are  concerned,  when  compared 
with  the  war  to  suppress  the  rebellion.  This  latter,  as 
to  the  former,  was  like  the  war  between  the  Titans  and 
the  gods.  On  the  llth  day  of  April,  1801,  the  flag  of 
the  United  States  waved  gracefully  over  the  battlements 


80         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

of  Fort  Sumpter,  the  beautiful  emblem  of  the  nation's 
unity,  peace  and  power.  On  that  day,  the  guns  of  South 
Carolina  were  turned  in  hostility  upon  that  flag.  The 
thunder  of  those  guns  filled  the  land  with  its  echoes. 
Every  mountain  found  a  tongue,  and  every  valley  had 
an  ear  to  hear.  The  whole  country  was  ablaze  with  civil 
war.  Then  it  was  that  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic 
—  grander,  if  possible,  than  ever  before  — came  forward 
to  fight  for  the  Union  and  the  flag.  You  are,  all  of 
you,  familiar  with  the  leading  events  of  that  war,  and 
some  of  you  participated  in  the  terrific  struggle.  Bull 
Run  was  a  dark  day  for  the  republic  ;  and  a  gloomy  cloud 
settled  over  the  Union  cause,  until  Grant  threw  upon  it 
the  effulgence  of  victory,  by  the  capture  of  Forts  Henry 
and  Donelson.  Many  great  battles  and  fierce  encoun- 
ters took  place,  and  for  four  years  the  destiny  of  the 
republic  was  tossed  upon  the  bloody  waves  of  victory 
and  defeat.  Vicksburg,  Shiloh,  Antietam  and  Gettys- 
burg on  the  one  hand  ;  the  peninsular  campaign,  Fred- 
ericksburg  and  Chancellorsville  on  the  other  :  but  in 
due  time  came  Appomattox.  Lee  surrendered,  the 
rebellion  was  defeated  and  crushed,  and  the  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic  won  its  last  and  most  splendid  and 
decisive  victory.  Every  time  the  war  of  the  rebellion 
comes  up  for  consideration,  the  inadequacy  of  human 
agencies  to  produce  what  then  occurred  is  so  apparent, 
that  one  is  inclined  to  say,  in  the  language  of  Psalmody,  • 

"  God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way, 
His  wonders  to  perform." 

Slavery  existed  in  fifteen  states  of  the  Union.  It 
was  recognized  and  protected  by  the  constitution  : 
it  was  intertwined  with  the  tendrils  of  social  life,  and 
embedded  in  the  material  interests  of  the  southern 


OUR  VETERANS.  81 

states.  Public  opinion  beat  upon  'it  like  surges  upon 
the  rock  of  Teneriffe.  Legislation  against  it  was  as 
impotent  as  the  commands  of  Canute  to  the  tides  of  the 
ocean.  There  was  no  peaceable  way  to  disturb  its  solid 
foundations  ;  but,  by  some  inscrutable  providence,  the 
slaveholders  themselves  plunged  the  country  into  a  civil 
war,  when  they  must  have  known,  if  they  had  any  fore- 
sight at  all,  that  such  a  war  would  be  dangerous,  if  not 
destructive,  to  the  institution  of  slavery.  Slavery  was 
not  only  abolished,  but  another  question  was  settled  by 
that  war,  which  could  not  be  adjusted  by  any  peaceful 
means.  Public  opinion  in  the  United  States  was 
strongly  divided  as  to  the  nature  of  the  federal  union. 
One  class  of  persons  contended  that  it  was  a  compact  or 
agreement  between  sovereign  and  independent  states, 
and  consequently  any  state  had  a  right,  upon  what 
appeared  to  be  sufficient  grounds,  in  its  own  judgment, 
to  dissolve  the  compact,  and  secede  from  the  Union  ; 
another  class  contended  that  the  Union  was  formed  by 
the  people  in  their  original  and  collective  capacity,  and 
that  it  was  intended  to  make  the  United  States  a  nation, 
one  and  indivisible,  and  that  the  general  government 
was  the  final  judge  in  any  conflict  between  federal  and 
state  authority.  Webster  and  Calhoun,  and  others,  dis- 
cussed this  question  with  great  ability,  but  their  argu- 
ments only  tended  to  intensify  the  convictions  of  the 
opposing  parties.  The  difference  was  as  deep  as  the 
foundations  of  the  government  When  the  war  of  the 
rebellion  ended,  this  question  was  settled.  The  Grand 
Army  of  the  Republic  had  trampled  secession,  with 
slavery,  into  the  bloody  mire  of  the  battle-field,  and 
buried  it  under  the  ruins  of  the  Confederate  govern- 
ment. 


82         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

War,  as  it  concerns  individuals,  is  a  terrible  calam- 
ity, and  especially  when  citizens  of  the  same  country, 
and  kindred  of  the  same  blood,  meet  each  other  on  the 
field  of  battle.  But  war,  as  it  concerns  nations,  is  some- 
times not  only  a  benefit,  but  indispensable  to  justice 
and  freedom.  Civil  wars  are  as  old  as  civilized  nations, 
and  the  point  at  issue  has  generally  been  whether  Caesar 
or  Pompey,  or  the  house  of  Lancaster  or  the  house  of 
York,  should  rule,  or  some  question  of  that  kind  ;  but 
our  civil  war  not  only  involved  freedom  to  enslaved 
millions,  but  the  very  existence  of  free  government. 

If  the  doctrines  of  secession,  contended  for  by  the 
South,  had  been  established,  not  only  would  the  United 
States  have  ceased  to  exist  as  a  nation,  but  the  enemies 
of  free  government  everywhere  would  have  pointed  to 
our  disintegration  as  proof  that  the  republican  system  of 
government  was  a  failure,  and  always  would  be  a  failure. 
Prior  to  the  war,  our  ears  were  filled  with  predictions 
that  if  the  slaves  were  set  free,  the  slave-holding  states 
would  be  ruined.  Frightful  pictures  of  anarchy,  crime 
.and  desolation  were  presented  to  our  view  as  the  result  of 
emancipation;  but  the  universal  testimony  of  the  southern 
people  now  is,  that  the  liberation  of  the  slaves  was  a  bless- 
ing, and  the  remarkable  growth  and  prosperity  of  that 
section  of  the  country,  since  the  war,  fully  confirms  their 
testimony.  Whatever  we  may  think,  future  generations 
will  hold  that  the  achievements  and  results  of  our  civil 
war  were  worth  all  they  cost.  History  is  said  to  be 
philosophy,  teaching  by  example.  Wars,  though  full 
of  wickedness  and  horrors,  are  also  full  of  instruction, 
and  develop  some  of  the  noblest  qualities  of  human 
nature.  Persons  who  have  suffered  martyrdom  for  their 
faith  have  been  canonized  as  saints,  and  there  is  nothing 


OUR  VETERANS.  83 

more  Godlike  than  such  a  death  ;  but  those  who  die  for 
their  faith  do  not  differ  much  in  merit  from  those  who 
die  for  their  country.  When  Joseph  Warren,  who  was 
killed  at  Bunker  Hill,  was  warned  of  his  danger,  he 
said,  "I  know  that  I  may  fall,  but  where  is  the  man 
who  does  not  think  it  glorious  and  delightful  to  die  for 
his  country?"  This  hero  was  the  type  of  thousands, 
who,  under  the  same  circumstances,  gave  up  their  lives 
in  the  revolutionary  war.  Warren  was  young,  accom- 
plished and  distinguished.  His  future  was  radiant  with 
hopes  of  honor  and  happiness  ;  but  he  cheerfully  laid 
down  his  young  life,  with  all  its  bright  prospects,  upon 
the  altar  of  his  country.  Some  philosophers  have 
taught  that  all  the  actions  of  men  are  governed  by 
self-interest, —  that  self-advantage  is  the  motive  for  every 
act  ;  but  in  the  death  of  Warren,  and  others  who  died 
like  him,  it  is  difficult  to  see  any  interested  motive  : 
and  who,  but  their  country  and  posterity,  could  reap  any 
benefit  from  the  sacrifice  of  their  lives  ? 

Disinterestedness  and  devotion  to  country  are  beauti- 
fully illustrated  in  the  history  of  Marion  and  his  men. 
They  were  farmers  and  mechanics.  Their  arms,  for  the 
most  part,  were  rusty  firelocks,  swords  made  out  of  mill 
saws,  knives  and  hatchets.  They  were  ragged  and 
without  shoes  or  hats  for  much  of  the  time  ;  and  yet 
these  men  made  themselves  a  terror  to  the  invaders  of 
their  country,  and  won  some  of  the  most  brilliant  vic- 
tories of  the  revolutionary  war.  On  one  occasion,  a 
British  officer,  bringing  dispatches,  came  into  Marion's 
camp,  and  when  invited  to  dine,  was  surprised  at  the 
entertainment,  which  consisted  wholly  of  some  sweet 
potatoes,  roasted  in  the  ashes,  and  served  on  a  log,  with 
vinegar  instead  of  wine  to  drink.  "I  have  not,"  said 


84         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

Marion  to  the  officer,  ' '  nor  have  any  of  my  men, 
received  a  dollar  for  our  services. ' '  And  when  the  officer 
inquired  his  motive  for  fighting  under  such  circum- 
stances, Marion  replied  in  words  which,  though  uttered 
in  the  swamps  of  South  Carolina,  will  ring  forever 
through  the  corridors  of  Time  :  "We  are  fighting," 
said  he,  "for  the  love  of  liberty." 

When  we  look  at  examples  like  these,  we  feel  lifted 
above  the  petty  and  selfish  struggles  of  common  life  into 
the  society  of  God's  nobility.  Take  the  volunteers  in 
the  great  war  of  the  rebellion.  Many  of  them  were 
young  men  in  affluent  circumstances,  and  with  brilliant 
prospects  in  life  ;  others  were  fathers  and  husbands, 
with  happy  homes  and  interesting  families  :  but  when 
the  tocsin  of  danger  to  their  country  sounded,  they  gave 
up  all  these,  and,  tearing  themselves  away  from  home, 
family  and  friends,  went  down  to  the  harvest  of  Death. 
Such  exhibitions  of  patriotism  and  self-denial  as  these 
adorn  and  dignify  human  nature  and  reflect  a  radiance 
of  glory  over  the  features  of  grim-visaged  war.  While 
speaking  of  Union  soldiers,  it  is  due  to  justice  to  say 
that,  while  my  firm  conviction  is  that  the  instigators  and 
leaders  of  the  rebellion  were  governed  by  an  ambition 
that  would  rather  "reign  in  hell  than  serve  in  heaven," 
I  believe  that  most  of  the  rank  and  file  of  the  rebel 
army  were  actuated  by  a  sense  of  duty  ;  but,  whatever 
we  may  think  of  their  cause  or  motives,  it  must  be 
admitted  that  their  self-denial  and  courage  are  unsur- 
passed in  the  annals  of  war. 

Since  the  landing  of  the  pilgrims  at  Plymouth  Rock, 
the  westward  tendency  of  empire  has  led  to  an  almost 
continuous  struggle  between  civilization  and  savage  life. 
Sometimes  this  struggle  has  assumed  the  form  of 


OUR  VETERANS.  85 

organized  warfare,  and  at  other  times  it  has  been  carried 
on  in  a  depredatory  manner.     Our  history  is  replete  with 
instances  where  men  and  women,  seeking  to  make  their 
homes  in  the  wilderness,  have  displayed  deeds  of  daring 
that  would  do  credit  to  the  veterans  of  any  war.     Our 
country  has  grown  from  the  first,  protected  by  the  pio- 
neer's rifle  from  the  tomahawk  and  scalping  knife  ;  and 
the   line  of   contact    between   the  white  man  and   the 
Indian  has  been  generally  marked  by  scenes  of  fire  and 
bloodshed.      Frontier  life  has  always  been  full  of  priva- 
tions and  perils  ;  but  the  hardy  pioneer,  with  his  children 
and  courageous  wife,  has  pushed  forward  his  cabin,  field 
and  improvements  over  the   mountains  and  across  the 
plains,  fighting  the  Indian  and  subduing  the  wilderness, 
till  his  settlements,  like  the  many  links  of  an  unbroken 
chain,  stretch  from  the  Atlantic   to   the   Pacific  Ocean. 
Were   it  possible  to  write  the  thrilling  details  of  this 
movement   of    population    across    the   continent,    there 
would  be  pictures  of  perseverance  and  courage  by  men, 
and  endurance  and  heroism  by  women,  that  would  make 
truth  appear  stranger  than  fiction;  and  the  settlement  of 
Oregon  would   furnish    many   attractive  pages  to  that 
most  interesting  history.     War,  as  our  armies  are  organ- 
ized, develops  the  great  qualities  of  great  men,  and  the 
weak  qualities  of  weak  men  ;  and,  as  a  general  rule,  real 
merit   in  our  military  organizations  finds  its  true  posi- 
tion and  just  reward.      Possibly,  another  than  Washing- 
ton  might  have  conducted  the  armies  of  the  revolution 
through  the  vicissitudes  of  that  war  to  final  triumph  ; 
but,  judging  from  all  we  know,  it  is  altogether  probable 
that   he  was  the  only  man  of  that  day  as  well  fitted  as 
he  was  to  discharge  the  various  and  arduous  duties  that 
devolved  upon  him.      His  modesty  and   manly  virtues, 


86         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

his  cool  judgment  and  personal  courage,  his  lofty  and 
disinterested  patriotism,  his  patience  and  fortitude  in 
adversity,  and  his  great  capacity  to  command,  inspired 
Lord  Byron  to  say  of  him  : 

"  Yes,  one  —  the  first  —  the  last  —  the  best  — 
The  Cincinnatus  of  the  West, 
Whom  envy  dared  not  hate, 
Bequeath'd  the  name  of  Washington, 
To  make  man  blush  there  was  but  one!" 

All  of  our  military  chieftains  have  risen  by  regular 
gradations  to  distinction  from  a  common  level  with  oth- 
ers, and  they  become  pre-eminent  in  the  army  because 
they  possessed  pre-eminent  qualifications  for  military 
duty.  Our  civil  war  affords  a  multitude  of  cases  where 
men  rose  by  the  force  of  their  abilities  —  some  from  the 
ranks,  others  from  inferior  commands  —  to  the  highest 
positions  in  the  army.  I  may  be  permitted,  without 
prejudice  to  others,  to  particularize  two  of  these,  who 
have  recently  retired  to  the  shades  of  private  life. 
Grant  and  Sherman  are  names  that  will  always  be  con- 
spicuous in  the  military  annals  of  our  country.  Gen- 
eral Sherman  seems  to  have  been  the  only  man  who,  at 
any  early  stage  of  the  rebellion,  had  an  adequate  con- 
ception of  the  great  war  in  which  we  were  involved  ; 
and  his  subsequent  military  career,  and  especially  his 
resistless  march  from  Atlanta  to  the  sea,  showed  that 
with  good  judgment  he  had  that  genius  for  war  which 
fitted  him  for  the  chief  command,  —  a  position  that  he 
filled  for  many  years  with  credit  to  himself  and  honor 
to  his  country.  General  Sherman's  abilities  have  been 
verified  in  various  ways  since  the  war  ;  and  his  steady 
refusal  to  be  tempted  into  the  political  field,  with  the 
prospect  of  becoming  President,  crowns  his  illustrious 


OUR  VETERANS.  87 

life  with  a  virtue  that  can  be  found  in  the  history  of  but 
few  men,  in  ancient  or  modern  times.  Recent  events 
have  thrown  a  shadow  over  the  good  name  of  General 
Grant.  Admitting  that  he  made  a  mistake  in  his  busi- 
ness associations  and  arrangements,  let  him  who  is  with- 
out sin  in  that  respect  cast  the  first  stone.  Our  disposi- 
tion is  to  magnify  the  mistakes  and  misfortunes  of  pub- 
lic and  prominent  men  into  great  offenses.  I  enjoyed 
the  entire  confidence  of  General  Grant  for  several  years, 
and  have  seen  him  under  the  most  trying  circumstances  ; 
and  whatever  criticisms  his  late  financial  difficulties  may 
excite,  I  cannot  doubt  his  personal  integrity.  I  know 
his  trustful  and  confiding  nature  :  when  he  believes  in  a 
man,  he  believes  in  him  with  his  whole  heart.  Consci- 
ous of  his  own  rectitude,  he  is  unsuspicious,  and  is  now 
suffering  from  those  who  have  obtained  and  abused  his 
confidence.  General  Grant  is  not  a  financier,  and  no 
man,  could  be  less  fitted  for  contact  with  the  sharpers  of 
Wall  Street  ;  but  his  great  military  abilities  lifted  the 
Union  cause  from  the  gloom  of  despair  to  the  shining 
heights  of  victory,  and  his  chief  magistracy  during  the 
stormy  days  of  reconstruction  gave  us  peace  and  pros- 
perity ;  and  if  now,  in  his  present  troubles,  he  cannot 
enjoy  the  gratitude,  he  at  least  deserves  the  charity  of 
his  countrymen. 

Happily,  in  our  republic,  a  great  military  establish- 
ment is  not  necessary  for  the  peace  and  safety  of  the 
country.  European  nations  are  grievously  oppressed  by 
standing  armies,  apparently  for  two  purposes.  Many  of 
the  governments  in  those  countries  are  distasteful  to 
the  people,  and  would  be  revolutionized  if  they  were 
not  protected  and  upheld  by  force  of  anus.  To  preserve 
the  balance  of  power  is  another  pretext  for  maintaining 


88          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

these  armies,  and  it  would  seem  the  only  way  to  keep 
the  peace  in  the  old  world,  is  for  the  nations  there  to  be 
ready  to  fight  and  destroy  each  other.  These  arma- 
ments and  instruments  of  arbitrary  power  are  like 
immense  leeches  upon  the  body  politic.  They  prey 
upon  the  blood  and  substance  of  the  people.  Military 
training  and  discipline  have  their  value  ;  but  the  strength 
of  an  army  lies  in  the  intelligence,  spirit  and  courage  of 
the  individual  soldier.  To  convert  an  intelligent  citi- 
zen of  the  United  States  into  an  efficient  soldier,  when 
the  safety  or  honor  of  his  country  is  at  stake,  is  no 
difficult  task.  He  knows  his  duty  and  feels  his  respon- 
sibility. His  self-respect  and  pride  of  character  have 
been  developed.  He  looks  upon  the  cause  of  his  coun- 
try as  his  individual  cause,  and  he  feels  personally 
injured  by  its  dishonor  or  defeat.  Such  men  as  these 
have  generally  fought  our  battles  and  won  our  victories, 
and  demonstrated  the  advantages  of  a  citizen  soldiery 
over  a  standing  army.  Peace  is  our  policy,  but  war  is 
a  possibility.  To  perpetuate  the  memories  and  preserve 
the  spirit  of  those  who  have  fought  or  died  for  our 
country  ;  to  cultivate  a  fraternal  feeling  of  devotion  to 
the  government,  and  of  hostility  to  its  enemies  ;  and  to 
infuse  with  military  virtues  the  life  and  obligations  of 
the  citizen,  — are  the  primary  objects  of  the  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic.  To  those  belonging  to  that  army  I 
would  say  :  Sectional  and  state  lines  should  be  invisi- 
ble to  your  army  ;  in  the  bright  lexicon  of  your  roll- 
call  there  should  be  no  such  words  as  "North"  or 
"South,"  or  "East"  or  "West;"  but  rather  your 
shibboleth  should  be,  "The  whole  boundless  contin- 
ent is  ours."  State  and  sectional  associations  ought  to 
be  abolished.  They  are  the  nurseries  of  local  prejudice. 


OUR  VETERANS.  89 

State  sovereignty  was  reduced  to  constitutional  limits 
by  the  war  of  the  rebellion,  and  now  our  policy  and 
duty  are  to  preserve  and  promote  equality  and  fraternity 
among  the  states.  Many  bitter  memories  are  associated 
in  our  minds  with  the  South  ;  but  time  is  softening  these 
into  the  shadows  of  the  past,  and  the  arms  of  your 
society  ought  to  be  open  to  those  in  that  portion  of  our 
country  who  are  willing  to  join  its  ranks.  "There  is 
more  joy  over  one  sinner  that  repenteth  than  over  ninety 
and  nine  righteous  men."  When  the  Grand  Army  of 
the  Republic  is  strongly  fortified  in  every  state  in  the 
Union,  then  we  shall  have  not  only  a  union  of  territory, 
but  a  union  of  hearts  and  a  union  of  hands,  which  is 
the  only  union  that  can  last  forever.  Americans  need 
to  be  more  Americanized  ;  they  ought  to  think  less  of 
the  state,  and  more  of  the  United  States.  No  matter 
whether  a  man  is  born  in  Maine  or  Texas,  he 
should  be  proud  to  say  of  every  foot  of  American 
soil:  "This  is  my  own,  my  native  land!"  And 
he  should  feel  that  affection  for  his  whole  united 
country,  which  the  Frenchman  feels  for  his  beauti- 
ful France,  or  an  Englishman  for  his  grand  old  Eng- 
land. Most  that  is  said  about  the  tendency  of  the  gen- 
eral government  to  despotism  is  absurd,  and  is  intended 
to  magnify  the  states  at  the  expense  of  the  Union.  Rep- 
resentatives of  the  people  make  the  laws,  and  these  rep- 
resentatives the  people  can  change,  if  they  choose,  at  our 
too  frequent  elections  ;  and  it  is  as  impossible  at  this  time 
to  abolish  our  representative  system  of  government,  as 
it  is  for  human  agency  to  change  the  current  of  the 
seas.  Our  weakness,  if  we  have  any,  lies  in  a  contrary 
direction.  We  have  our  experiences  before  us.  Local 
rivalries,  jealousies,  prejudices  and  interest  contend  for 


90         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

the  state  ;  patriotism  alone  pleads  for  the  Union.  Point- 
ing to  the  battle-fields  of  two  great  wars,  patriotism 
appeals  to  us,  by  the  sacred  memories  of  those  who  have 
died  for  their  country,  to  stand  by  the  Union  ;  and  her 
voice  to  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  is,  not  to 
spread  upon  its  banner  any  words  of  sectional  or  state 
import,  but  to  let  it  be  emblazoned  all  over  with  those 
other  more  glorious  and  more  inspiring  words,  "  The 
American  Union  Forever."  When  the  father  of  Han- 
nibal invested  his  son  with  a  military  command,  he 
required  the  youth  to  go  to  a  Carthaginian  altar,  and 
there  take  an  oath  of  eternal  enmity  to  Rome  ;  and  so 
your  fatherland  commands  every  citizen-soldier  of  the 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  to  take  an  oath  upon  the 
altar  of  his  country,  that  he  will  be  forever  true  to  its 
flag,  and  forever  the  enemy  to  its  foreign  and  domestic 
foes.  Nationality  is  represented  by  the  flag.  Whether 
the  "  meteor  flag  of  England  "  waves  from  the  Tower  of 
London,  or  floats  upon  the  winds  of  South  Africa,  Great 
Britain,  with  all  her  greatness,  glory  and  power,  is  per- 
sonified by  that  flag.  Whenever,  in  any  sea  or  upon 
any  land,  an  indignity  is  offered  to  that  flag,  the  whole 
British  empire  is  insulted  ;  and  a  hostile  gun  fired 
athwart  the  cross  of  St.  George  kindles  a  flame  of  indig- 
nation from  the  British  Channel  to  the  highlands  of 
Scotland.  What  the  meteor  flag  is  to  Great  Britain,  the 
"stars  and  stripes"  are  or  ought  to  be  to  the  United 
States.  We  have  no  flag  of  Massachusetts,  or  South  Caro- 
lina, or  of  any  other  state.  Our  flag  represents  no  miserable 
confederation  of  sovereignties  to  fight  each  other  ;  but, 
like  the  tricolor  of  France,  or  the  eagle  of  Russia,  it 
represents  an  independent,  united  and  indivisible  nation. 
Whenever  there  is  a  public  festival,  or  our  people  meet 


OUR  VETERANS.  91 

to  commemorate  any  event  in  our  history,  no  state  or 
sectional  flag  is  displayed  ;  but  the  same  beautiful  ban- 
ner that  floats  from  the  dome  of  the  capitol  at  Washing- 
ton floats  alike  on  the  soft  breezes  from  the  Gulf  of 
Mexico,  and  the  more  rugged  winds  from  the  lakes  of  the 
North.  When  one  of  our  vessels,  sailing  from  the  mouth 
of  the  Mississippi,  meets  another  from  Boston  harbor  in 
the  ports  of  Europe,  or  far-off  India,  there  is  no  difference 
in  their  colors  ;  but  from  the  mastheads  of  both 
vessels  the  "stars  and  stripes,"  in  loving  recognition, 
proclaim  the  unity  and  power  of  the  American  nation. 
Wherever  it  is  unfurled,  historic  and  inspiring  associ- 
ations cluster  around  that  flag.  Valiant  hands  bore  it 
aloft,  "torn  but  flying,"  from  the  bloody  heights  of 
Bunker  Hill  to  the  closing  scenes  at  Yorktown.  Victory 
perched  upon  it  at  Lundy's  Lane,  and  plumed  it  with  a 
new  glory  upon  the  ensanguined  field  of  New  Orleans. 
"  Full  high  advanced,"  it  waved  triumphantly  amid  the 
thunder  and  smoke  of  battle  from  the  marshy  banks  of 
the  Rio  Grande  to  the  rock-ribbed  battlements  of  the 
Mexican  capital  ;  and  when  the  stars  and  bars  appeared, 
emblematic  of  state  sovereignty,  millions  rallied  to 
this  consecrated  emblem  of  the  nation's  supremacy,  and, 
without  a  stripe  effaced  or  a  star  bediinmed,  carried  it  to 
a  complete  victory.  There  is  no  loyalty  in  this  country 
but  loyalty  to  the  flag.  Liberty  and  Union  are  enthroned 
in  its  heaven-born  hues,  and  with  more  than  kingly 
power  command,  and  with  more  than  queenly  beauty 
inspire,  the  undivided  fealty  of  every  American  citizen. 
I  see  before  me  men  who  belonged  to  the  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic  when  that  army  was  mustered  into  the 
ranks  of  war.  They  can  tell  us  of  the  duties  and  sac- 
rifices of  a  soldier's  life.  Thev  have  heard  the  shoutinir 


92          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

and  cries  of  charging  squadrons,  and  the  shrieks  and 
groans  of  the  wounded  and  dying.  Like  grain  before 
the  reaper's  blade,  they  have  seen  brave  men  go  down 
in  a  hailstorm  of  bullets,  or  swept  away  in  the  fire  and 
smoke  from  the  cannon's  mouth.  They  have  seen  the 
toilsome  march,  the  dreary  camp,  the  shock  and  roar 
and  blood  of  battle  ;  but  out  of  these  they  have  seen  the 
glory  of  their  country  emerge  like  a  full -orbed  moon 
from  the  clouds  of  night,  to  shed  its  radiance  over  a 
great,  happy  and  prosperous  nation.  We  acknowledge 
our  debt  to  these  old  soldiers  and  their  compatriots  in 
arms,  and  our  inability  to  pay.  Speaking  through  its 
halls  of  legislation,  the  republic  ought  to  say  to  these 
men  :  "When  I  was  in  danger,  you  came  to  my 
defense  ;  when  I  was  stricken  and  wounded  and  sore 
pressed,  you  flew  to  my  relief ;  you  put  your  lives 
between  my  life  and  the  hand  of  the  destroyer  ;  and  now, 
in  my  prosperity,  I  will  take  you  to  my  bosom,  and 
make  you  the  cherished  objects  of  my  care  and  benefi- 
dence."  May  the  present  Grand  Army  of  the  Repub- 
lic prove  a  worthy  successor  of  that  grand  army  whose 
achievements  are  before  us,  and  keep  this  republic  what 
our  fathers  made  it, — -"the  land  of  the  free  and  the  home 
of  the  brave." 


THE  PORTLAND  EXPOSITION.  93 


THE    F>ORTLAND    EXPOSITION. 


ADDRESS   AT   THE  OPENING  OF   THE   EXPOSITION  BUILDING,  DELIV- 
ERED IN  PORTLAND,  OREGON,  SEPTEMBER  27,  189O. 


Mr.  President,  Ladies  and  Gentlemen  :  We  are  told 
in  holy  writ,  that  when  man  was  created,  he  was  digni- 
fied by  his  Creator  with  a  commission  to  multiply  and 
replenish,  and  subdue  the  earth,  and  to  have  dominion 
over  the  fish  of  the  sea,  and  over  the  fowl  of  the  air, 
and  over  the  cattle,  and  over  all  the  earth,  and  over 
every  creeping  thing  that  creepeth  upon  the  earth. 
History  is  a  record  of  the  manner  in  which  this  divine 
commission  has  been  executed.  Power  and  dominion 
are  the  sceptre  and  crown  of  man's  greatness.  Can  we 
imagine  what  the  earth  would  be  if  this  power  and 
dominion  had  never  existed  ?  Can  we  comprehend  all 
that  has  been  accomplished  in  the  exercise  of  this  power 
and  dominion?  Looking  back  over  the  ages,  we  are 
struck  by  the  impressive  fact  that  man  has  been  grow- 
ing into  a  larger  comprehension  of  his  power  and 
destiny  as  the  God-ordained  ruler  of  the  earth.  We  are 
not  the  worms  of  the  dust  we  are  sometimes  represented 
to  be  ;  but  we  are  the  vice-regents  of  the  Almighty,  and 
we  shall  never  know  ourselves  until  we  come  into  a  full 
consciousness  of  our  dignity  and  divine  relations.  Our 
royal  birthright  is  to  have  dominion  over  and  subdue 
the  earth.  We  are  qualified  and  equipped  by  our 
Heavenly  Father  for  this  exalted  office,  and  the  highest 
of  human  attainments  is  to  know  and  realize  this  fact. 
Unsubdued  by  man,  the  wilderness,  the  waste  place  and 
the  desert  despoil  the  bosom  of  the  earth. 


94          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

Human  wisdom  and  skill  have  already  won  great  vic- 
tories, and  the  future  is  pregnant  with  still  greater 
victories  over-  these  impediments  to  man's  dominion. 
Think  of  the  different  kinds  of  cereals  that  the  husband- 
man gathers  from  the  golden  fields  of  the  harvest.  Think 
of  the  great  variety  of  vegetables  that  are  seen  in  the 
market-places  of  the  world.  Think  of  the  different 
sorts  of  fruit  suited  to  every  taste,  and  the  infinite 
variety  of  flowers  that  delight  our  senses  with  their 
fragrance  and  beauty.  All  these,  if  not  discovered, 
were  developed  by  human  skill  and  industry  ;  and  all 
contribute  to  the  support,  comfort  and  happiness  of  the 
human  family.  No  limit  has  been  found  to  the  diversity 
and  improvement  of  these  productions,  and  for  aught 
that  appears  they  may  go  on  in  endless  progression. 

Man's  dominion  is  not  confined  to  manipulations  of 
the  soil,  but  the  structural  formations  of  the  earth  are 
subject  to  his  will.  Mountains  are  torn  down  or  tun- 
neled ;  rocks  are  demolished  and  removed  by  explosive 
inventions.  Rivers  are  bridged  or  turned  into  new 
channels,  and  the  mighty  ocean  is  compelled  to  carry 
the  burdens  of  human  trade  and  commerce. 

More  than  in  anything  else,  the  dominion  of  man  is 
displayed  in  subjugating  Nature's  forces  to  his  con- 
trol. Water  flows  gently  from  its  crystal  fountains  ;  it 
murmurs  softly  in  its  brooks  ;  it  rolls  silently  in  its 
rivers,  and  sleeps  majestically  in  its  oceans  :  but  man  has 
discovered  and  developed  the  tremendous  expansibility 
of  its  nature.  Steam  appears  at  the  bidding  of  its 
master,  like  the  fabled  genie  from  the  mist,  —  a  giant 
worker  needing  no  sleep  or  rest.  It  turns  the  wheels  of 
the  thousand  mills  and  factories  with  its  imprisoned 
breath.  In  its  harness  of  iron  it  draws  innumerable 


THE  PORTLAND  EXPOSITION.  95 

trains  of  passengers  and  freight,  and  by  its  saving  of 
time  and  conquest  of  distance  it  has  revolutionized  the 
commercial  facilities  of  the  world.  The  winds  and  the 
waves  of  the  sea  are  its  playthings.  Steadily  and  stub- 
bornly it  propels  the  great  ships  through  storm  and  calm, 
bringing  lands  otherwise  foreign  into  family  relations. 

Pre-eminently  is  man's  dominion  exemplified  in 
the. use  of  electricity.  To  capture  and  control  this 
subtle  and  invisible  agency  is  the  most  wonderful 
achievement  of  human  wisdom  and  skill.  One  hundred 
and  fifty  years  ago,  lightning  was  looked  upon  as  a 
wrathful  expression  of  Divine  Providence  ;  but  in  1736, 
Benjamin  Franklin  made  it  known  that  this  fiery  mes- 
senger of  thunder  among  the  clouds  could  be  subjected 
to  the  will  of  man.  Now  it  is  found  everywhere,  and 
used  for  almost  ever}'  purpose.  It  rides  upon  the  storm, 
and  reposes  in  the  bowels  of  the  earth.  It  shivers  the 
sturdy  oak  with  its  bolts,  and  gently  quickens  the  sick 
man's  pulse.  It  is  an  invisible  locomotive  of  unlimited 
power.  It  moves  with  noiseless  force  the  engines  of 
great  machines.  It  transmits  messages  with  the  light- 
ning's speed.  It  is  self-inflammable,  burns  without  fuel, 
and  emits  a  light  of  incomparable  brilliancy.  Wherever 
other  means  of  illumination  do  not  exist,  wherever  other 
kinds  of  fuel  cannot  be  found,  wherever  other  mechan- 
ical motors  cannot  be  applied,  electricity  is  always  at 
hand  with  an  inexhaustible  supply  of  light,  heat  and 
power.  Considering  these  things,  who  can  put  limits  to 
human  progress?  —  who  can  prescribe  bounds  to  •man's 
dominion  ?  To  think  of  the  advancement  in  knowledge 
and  power,  within  a  comparatively  late  period,  startles 
the  mind  with  the  possibilities  of  the  future.  Prior  to 
the  fifteenth  century,  there  was  not  a  printing  press,— 


96          ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILUAMS. 

prior  to  1802,  there  was  not  a  steamboat, — prior  to  1825, 
there  was  not  a  railroad, — and  prior  to  1835  there  was 
not  an  electric  wire,  in  the  world.  Most  of  the  machines 
to  save  time  and  labor,  with  power  to  do  almost  every- 
thing, except  to  think  and  talk,  are  of  recent  invention. 
Modern  times  are  particularly  distinguished  by  the 
exaltation  of  man's  dominion  from  the  visible  into  the 
invisible  world.  Here  is  a  region  in  which  human 
thought  may  soar  and  spread  its  wings  with  unrestrained 
freedom.  Here  are  mountains  of  discovery  inviting  to 
loftier  flights  the  researches  of  star-eyed  science. 
Higher  than  all  these  is  that  mysterious  realm  in  which 
the  faith  of  man  expands  into  the  inspiration  of  God. 
Here  are  revelations  of  wisdom  and  power  to  be  made 
not  dreamed  of  in  our  philosophies. 

Comprehensively  viewed,  it  is  evident  that  the  world  is 
better  now  than  it  ever  was,  and  that  mankind  is  grow- 
ing wiser  and  better  ' '  with  the  process  of  the  suns. ' ' 
Opinions  to  the  contrary  are  entertained, —  largely  due, 
no  doubt,  to  the  wide-spread  publicity  given  to  sensa- 
tional events  by  the  news  journals  of  our  day.  To  Him  in 
whose  hands  this  improvement  is,  a  thousand  years  are 
as  one  day.  Generations  of  men  may  come  and  go 
with  hardly  any  perceptible  growth  in  their  intellectual 
or  moral  power  ;  but  one  step  in  a  cycle  of  ages  is  no 
encroachment  upon  an  infinitude  of  time.  All  growth 
in  the  material  world  is  imperceptible,  except  as  to 
results  ;  and  the  analogy  holds  good  in  the  intellectual 
and  moral  world.  Human  advancement  is  like  the 
increment  of  the  ocean,  in  which  every  drop  of  water 
produces  an  effect. 

Some  individuals  acquire  an  eminence  from  which, 
by  their  example  and  influence,  they  enlighten  and 


THE  PORTLAND  EXPOSITION.  97 

exalt  others,  and  some  are  sordid  and  grovelling  in  their 
lives  ;  but  the  aggregate  result  is  good,  for  light  is 
stronger  than  darkness,  and  goodness  more  enduring 
than  evil.  Reciprocity  of  influence  is  the  law  of  social 
life.  Thought  is  power.  Conjoined,  the  thoughts  of  a 
few  strong-minded  persons  may  excite  a  mob,  repress  a 
despotism,  or  revolutionize  a  country.  Educational 
institutions  are  largely  founded  upon  the  idea  that 
what  one  man  has  said  or  done  will  influence  the 
thoughts  and  actions  of  other  men.  We  have  inheri- 
ted from  our  progenitors  the  discoveries  and  inventions 
which  they  made,  and  our  descendants  will  inherit  from 
us  what  we  have  added  to  these  discoveries  and  inven- 
tions ;  and  this  accumulation  of  knowledge  must  be 
productive  of  beneficial  results. 

All  our  surroundings  are  educational  in  their  influ- 
ence. While  it  is  true  that  "evil  communications 
corrupt  good  manners,"  it  is  also  true  that  good 
communications  create  and  preserve  good  manners. 
Schools  with  books,  and  churches  with  Bibles,  from 
time  immemorial,  have  been  employed  to  develop  the 
intellectual  and  moral  faculties  of  mankind  ;  but  lat- 
terly new  and  additional  methods  have  been  adopted 
with  great  success.  I  refer  particularly  to  kindergartens 
for  little  children,  and  industrial  expositions  for  children 
of  a  larger  growth.  Playthings  are  made  educational  in 
the  kindergarten.  The  first  impulse  of  infancy  is  to  see  a 
thing  :  the  next  is  to  touch,  and  then,  if  possible,  to 
take  it  apart  and  try  to  put  it  together  again.  The  little 
girl  wants  to  dress  and  undress  her  doll,  and  is  curious 
as  to  the  construction  of  its  body  ;  and  the  little  boy  is 
fond  of  investigating  things  with  a  hammer,  and  finding 
out  the  secrets  of  their  mechanism. 


98         ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

To  make  these  natural  inclinations  conduce  to  the 
improvement  as  well  as  the  pleasure  of  the  little  ones, 
is  the  theory  of  teaching  in  the  kindergarten.  Things 
in  these  infant  schools  are  used  to  cultivate  the  senses 
of  sight,  sound  and  touch,  and  those  faculties  which 
delight  in  the  object  lessons  of  nature  and  art.  Public 
expositions  of  the  collected  productions  of  human 
industry  and  skill  are  of  a  kindred  nature,  and  are 
schools  of  universal  study.  They  bring  out  the  learning 
of  books  into  practical  and  useful  forms.  They  diffuse 
knowledge,  and  spread  their  edifying  influences  to  all 
countries  and  to  all  classes  of  people.  Prance  inaugu- 
rated the  system  of  international  expositions  in  1798, 
and  very  soon  other  nations  followed  her  example. 
In  1851  a  world's  exhibition  was  held  in  London 
with  great  success  ;  and  since  then  such  exhibitions 
have  been  held  in  Paris  in  1855,  again  in  London 
in  1862,  again  in  Paris  in  1867,  in  Vienna  in  1878, 
and  in  1876  the  Centennial  of  the  United  States. 
Another  such  exposition  is  now  open  in  Paris,  and  great 
preparations  are  being  made  for  another  in  the  United 
States  in  1892. 

To  estimate  the  benign  influence  of  these  meetings  ol 
the  nations  is  an  impossibility.  They  are  as  shadows 
cast  before  that  ideal  time  pictured  by  the  poet, 

"When  the  war-drum   throbs  no   longer,  and  the   battle-flags  are 

furled 
In  the  Parliament  of  man,  the  Federation  of  the  world." 

Differences  of  political  institutions,  differences  of 
religious  systems,  and  differences  of  latitude,  are  apt  to 
make  different  countries  jealous  and  unfriendly  to  each 
other  ;  but  these  international  convocations  are  calculated 
to  break  down  the  partitions  of  ignorance  and  prejudice, 


THE  PORTLAND  EXPOSITION.  99 

and  create  good  feeling  and  concord  in  their  place. 
Asiatics,  Europeans  and  Americans  meet  upon  common 
ground.  The  tendency  is  to  make  the  good  of  each 
common  to  all.  Taken  as  a  rule,  the  people  of  other 
races  are  less  enlightened  than  we  are,  but  not  as  bad  as 
they  are  frequently  represented  to  be. 

Human  nature  is  substantially  the  same  everywhere, 
and  the  differences  among  men  are  mainly  due  to  the 
adventitious  circumstances  of  birth  and  education.  No 
matter  how  debased  the 'Asiatic  or  African  may  be,  all 
have  intellectual  and  moral  faculties  ;  and  individual 
instances  of  improvement  show  that,  with  adequate 
means  and  opportunities,  all  can  be  raised  to  the  stand- 
ard of  Christian  civilization.  To  this  end,  these  inter- 
national exhibitions  are  of  inestimable  value.  One 
nation  is  made  acquainted  with  the  useful  and  beautiful 
of  another  nation.  One  country  shows  its  supremacy  in 
agricultural  implements  and  pursuits,  another  in  man- 
ufactures, and  another  in  art ;  and  all  are  raised  by  a 
generous  spirit  of  emulation  to  a  higher  degree  of 
human  advancement.  Heaven  may  have  ordained  these 
as  one  of  the  evangels  of  "peace  on  earth  and  good 
will  to  men." 

Similar  in  their  influences  are  state  and  inter-state 
expositions  in  our  country.  We  are  to-day  opening  one 
of  these  ;  and  our  first  duty  is  to  acknowledge  our  grati- 
tude to  God  for  the  auspicious  circumstances  under 
which  we  are  permitted  to  assemble. 

Peace  reigns  everywhere  with  a  gentle  and  gracious 
hand,  and  the  "  fiery  wheels  of  discord  "  are  the  chained 
captives  of  her  sway.  Plenty  has  poured  into  our  laps 
the  garnered  treasures  of  her  golden  fields,  and  the 
young  autumn  conies  to  us  laden  with  the  fruitage  of  a 


100       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

glorious  summer.  Health  fulness  disports  itself  in  our 
valleys,  mingling  the  mountain  breeze  with  the  ocean's 
breath,  and  rejoicing  in  the  vigor  of  our  men  and  the 
wholesome  comeliness  of  our  maidens.  Nature  spreads 
around  us  her  unequaled  charms,  and  fills  our  vision 
with  every  variety  of  beauty,  from  the  snow-capped 
mountain  touching  the  clouds  to  the  dainty  flower  that 
glistens  in  the  dew  of  the  morning. 

Lying  between  the  Rocky  Mountains  and  the  Pacific 
Ocean  is  a  vast  region  to  whose  future  greatness  there 
is  every  reason  to  expect  no  parallel  can  be  found  in  the 
chronicles  of  Time, —  greatness,  not  in  war,  but  great- 
ness in  peace.  Here  can  be  found  all  the  beauties  of 
classic  Greece,  all  the  softness  and  brilliancy  of  Italian 
skies,  all  the  fertility  of  sunny  France,  and  all  the 
grandeur  of  Alpine  scenery.  Taking  into  the  account 
our  mild  and  healthful  climate,  our  soil  of  varied  rich- 
ness, our  beautiful  and  inspiring  surroundings,  there  is 
no  reason  why  the  people  of  this  coast  should  not  attain 
the  highest  pinnacle  of  material  prosperity.  We  have 
to-day  the  evidence  of  our  past  progress,  and  the  pro- 
phetic assurances  of  our  future  advancement.  Many  of 
us  can  recall  the  time  when  the  wilderness  encompassed 
the  place  where  this  magnificent  structure  stands, —  when 
the  moaning  of  the  lonely  winds  among  the  trees,  and 
the  murmur  of  the  modest  rivulet  in  the  vale,  were  the 
only  sounds  invading  the  solitude.  Now,  everything 
is  so  different  that  the  change  seems  like  the  transfor- 
mation of  a  dream.  Sixty  thousand  people  are  dwel- 
ling within  an  hour's  journey  of  this  edifice  ;  the  activi- 
ties of  a  great  city  are  throbbing  around  its  walls  ; 
the  streets  are  filled  with  the  rush,  the  rattle  and  the 
roar  of  commerce  and  .traffic  ;  and  numerous  churches, 


THE  PORTLAND  EXPOSITION.  loi 

schools  and  beautiful  homes  bear  witness  to  the  intelli- 
gence, morality  and  refinement  of  the  people.  Inspired 
by  the  progressive  spirit  of  the  age,  our  citizens  have 
erected  this  great  building,  at  a  cost  of  $150,000,  for 
the  public  exposition  of  the  industries  of  the  North 
Pacific  Coast. 

This  is  a  theatre  in  which  labor  plays  all  the  parts. 
Agriculture,  from  whose  inexhaustible  stores  all  other 
industries  derive  their  sustenance  and  support,  appears 
with  her  wonderful  inventions  for  the  cultivation  of  the 
soil  and  the  varied  productions  of  her  intelligent  hus- 
bandry. Manufacturers  are  here,  with  their  multiform 
machinery,  to  show  how  iron  and  wood  may  be  made 
to  work  with  skill  and  power  for  the  wants  and  comforts 
of  mankind.  Art  brings  its  treasures  of  genius  and 
taste,  to  show  that  the  love  of  the  beautiful  is  among 
the  highest  and  best  of  human  aspirations.  And,  to 
crown  all,  these  dazzling  lights  and  gorgeous  decora- 
tions, this  grand  and  inspiring  music,  this  bewildering 
display  of  exhibits,  make  a  scene  of  surpassing  magnifi- 
cence, splendor  and  beauty.  Faith  and  Hope  are  the 
presiding  divinities  of  this  occasion.  In  their  names 
we  dedicate  this  building  to  the  useful  and  beautiful 
in  all  the  departments  of  human  labor  and  skill,  and 
our  invocation  for  the  future  is  : 

"  Oh,  make  Thou  us.  through  centuries  long, 
In  peace  secure  and  justice  strong  ; 
And,  cast  in  some  diviner  mould, 
Let  the  new  cycle  shame  the  old." 


102       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 


GEN.    W.    T.    SHERMAN. 


ADDRESS   UPON   HIS    DEATH,  DELIVERED   IN   PORTLAND,    OREGON, 
FEBRUARY  23,    1891. 


Early  in  the  year  1865,  two  hundred  thousand  war- 
worn veterans  of  the  Union  army,  with  bands  of  music 
and  flying  banners,  marched  down  Pennsylvania  Avenue, 
and  at  the  head  of  one  division  of  that  magnificent 
procession  rode  General  W.  T.  Sherman.  Rejoicing  mul- 
titudes greeted  him  with  every  demonstration  of  grati- 
tude and  praise.  My  first  meeting  with  the  great  warrior 
was  upon  that  memorable  occasion.  Our  official  and 
social  relations  thereafter  enabled  me  to  know  him  well ; 
and  the  more  I  knew  of  him  the  better  I  liked  him.  I 
found  him  to  be  an  amiable  and  unselfish  man,  over- 
flowing with  good  nature  and  kindness  for  everybody. 
There  were  no  sore  places  or  sour  feelings  in  his 
composition  :  all  was  genial  and  sunny. 

I  have  noticed  that  not  a  few  of  our  public  men  have 
some  grievance  :  somebody,  as  they  imagine,  has 
slighted,  affronted,  or  wronged  them  ;  and  they  have 
resentments  to  cherish.  But  nothing  of  the  kind  disturbed 
the  serenity  and  joy  fulness  of  General  Sherman's  life. 
Judging  from  our  knowledge  of  others,  we  might  sup- 
pose that  the  decided  disapproval  and  rejection  by  the 
authorities  of  Washington,  and  especially  by  Grant,  of 
the  terms  upon  which  he  accepted  the  surrender  of 
Johnston,  would  have  left  a  mortifying  sting  to  rankle 
in  his  bosom  ;  but  he  made  no  sign  of  enmity  to  any 
one,  on  this  or  any  other  account.  His  battles,  marches 
and  sieges  made  him  many  enemies,  whose  animosities 
survived  the  war  ;  but  with  him,  when  hostilities  ceased, 


GEN.  W.  T.  SHERMAN.  103 

all  his  war  feelings  came  to  an  end.  He  was  a  friend  in 
peace  to  those  to  whom  he  had  been  an  enemy  in  war. 
We  are  familiar  with  the  story  of  David  and  Jona- 
than ;  but  if  their  extraordinary  friendship  was  more 
sentimental,  it  was  not  more  interesting  than  the  rela- 
tions of  Grant  and  Sherman.  These  relations  were 
indeed  beautiful.  They  exalted  both  men  in  my  esti- 
mation. Our  country,  and  all  countries,  from  time 
immemorial,  have  been  cursed  with  the  rivalries  and 
jealousies  of  great  men.  Few  people  know  how  much 
these  have  to  do  with  the  turmoils,  wars  and  bad  gov- 
ernments of  the  world.  Grant  and  Sherman  were  the 
two  great  generals  of  the  war.  Circumstances  conduced 
to  make  them  rivals  for  distinction  and  the  honors  of 
their  country.  There  was  ample  room  and  provocation 
enough  for  jealousy  between  them  ;  but  the  common 
cause  in  which  they  drew  their  swords  seems  to  have 
rounded  their  lives  into  an  unbroken  harmony.  I  have 
frequently  conversed  with  each  about  the  other.  There 
were  no  complaints  or  fault-findings  upon  these  occa- 
sions. Grant  always  spoke  kindly  of  Sherman  :  Sher- 
man enjoyed  the  praises  of  Grant.  It  is  difficult  to  com- 
pare the  military  capabilities  of  two  men  so  different  in 
temperament.  Sherman  was  quick,  nervous  and 
impulsive  ;  Grant,  thoughtful,  deliberate  and  iinperturb- 
able.  Marching  through  Georgia  suited  the  dash  of 
Sherman  ;  the  siege  of  Yieksburg,  the  deep  resolve  and 
unyielding  tenacity  of  Grant.  Hoth  have  written 
books.  Sherman  had  more  snap  and  sparkle  iu  his 
style  ;  Grant,  more  terseness,  strength,  and  simplicity. 
Grant  was  a  man  of  few  words,  and  no  speech-maker  : 
Sherman  frequently  spoke  on  public  occasions  in  a  fluent 
and  pleasing  manner. 


104       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

Few  men  have  lived  in  the  United  States  who  had  an 
option  *upon  the  office  of  President  ;  but  General  Sher- 
man could  have  been  nominated,  and  in  all  human  prob- 
ability elected,  President  of  the  United  States,  if  he  had 
consented  to  become  a  candidate  for  that  office.  Poli- 
ticians allured  General  Grant,  contrary  to  his  own  judg- 
ment, to  be  a  candidate  for  a  third  term  :  but  when  they 
approached  Sherman,  he  notified  them  distinctly  that 
he  would  not  take  any  political  office  ;  and  he  never 
changed  this  resolution. 

To  go  over  the  military  record  of  General  Sherman 
upon  this  occasion  would  serve  no  useful  purpose.  Our 
school-boys  are  familiar  with  the  distinguishing  features 
of  that  record.  His  deeds  are  celebrated  in  song  and 
story.  History  has  written  his  name,  in  letters  that 
time  cannot  efface,  among  the  great  war  chieftains  of  the 
world.  When  a  great  man  dies,  it  is  a  consolation  to 
friends  and  country  if  it  can  be  truthfully  said  over  his 
grave  that  he  was  good  as  well  as  great.  I  can  say  with 
confidence  that  General  Sherman  was  a  good  man.  I 
mean  by  that  to  say  that  he  was  patriotic,  honest,  gen- 
erous, and  pure,  as  husband,  father,  soldier,  and  citizen. 
No  scandal  about  wine,  women,  or  money  tarnished  his 
good  name. 

Twenty-five  years  ago,  the  war  for  the  Union  ended. 
Death  has  been  busy  with  the  men  of  that  war  ;  but 
Time  is  erecting  a  monument  to  their  memories,  in 
states  united,  that  will  stand  as  long  as  our  flag  repre- 
sents the  freedom  and  union  of  the  American  people. 
Our  country  has  folded  to  its  green  bosom,  and  to  their 
earthly  rest,  Grant,  Sherman,  Sheridan,  Thomas,  Han- 
cock, Logan,  and  many  of  their  compatriots  ;  but  their 
graves  are  pilgrim  shrines  to  which  future  generations 
will  come  to  commune  with  the  historic  dead,  and  con- 
secrate themselves  to  the  service  of  their  country.  I 


GEN.  W.  T.  SHERMAN.  105 

feel  that  a  great  vacancy  is  caused  by  the  death  of  Gen- 
eral Sherman.  He  had  a  deep,  strong  hold  upon  the 
hearts  of  the  people,  and  was  the  most  conspicuous  of 
his  living  countrymen  in  the  eyes  of  the  world.  He 
represented  to  the  rising  generation  the  battles  and  vic- 
tories of  a  great  war,  by  which  slavery  was  abolished 
and  the  Union  preserved.  When  such  a  man  dies,  we 
experience  a  sense  of  bereavement,  and  feel  as  if  we 
were  separated  from  one  who  had  cared  for  us  with  the 
vigilance  and  tenderness  of  a  father.  One  after  another, 
the  statesmen  and  soldiers  who  stood  with  Lincoln, 
Grant,  and  Sherman  are  falling  around  us  "like  leaves 
in  wintry  weather;"  and  those  who  still  survive  are 
whitened  for  the  harvest  whose  reaper  is  Death.  Happy 
are  those  who,  as  they  fall,  can  say  :  "I  have  fought  a 
good  fight  :  I  have  finished  my  course  :  I  have  kept 
the  faith."  There  is  no  philosophy  so  profound,  and  no 
preacher  so  eloquent,  as  an  open  grave.  All  temporal 
things  are  swallowed  up  forever  in  its  darkness  and 
silence.  On  the  other  side  is  the  unknown,  the  invis- 
ible and  the  everlasting. 

General  Sherman  is  dead  !  Millions  of  people  will 
utter  these  words,  and  then,  like  the  breath  out  of  which 
they  are  made,  they  will  be  gone.  Bells  will  toll,  mili- 
tary processions  move,  funeral  marches  be  played,  and 
eulogies  pronounced  ;  and  then  the  human  tide  will  roll 
on  unconcernedly,  as  though  a  bubble  had  burst  upon 
its  bosom.  "What  shadows  we  are,  and  what  shadows 
we  pursue  !"  Possibly,  the  dying  man  and  the  falling 
leaf  perish  alike,  and  pass  into  nonentity  ;  but  to  the 
eye  of  faith  a  bow  of  promise  spans  the  darkness  and 
silence  of  the  tomb,  with  the  comforting  assurance 
that 

"  Who  in  life's   battles  firm  doth  stand, 
Shall  hear  Hope's  tender  blossoms  into  the  silent  land." 


106       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 


THE  VALUE   OF   GOOD   THOUGHTS. 


ADDRESS  TO  THE  GRADUATING  CLASS  OF  THE  HIGH  SCHOOL,  DELIV- 
ERED IN  PORTLAND,   OREGON,  JUNE  23,  1891. 


My  Young-  Friends  :  My  object  in  addressing  you 
this  evening  is  to  give  you  some  advice  of  which  I  hope 
you  may  avail  yourselves  with  profit  when  you  go  out 
from  this  school  into  the  active  duties  and  responsibili- 
ties of  life.  To  find  happiness  is  the  chief  pursuit  of 
mankind,  and  its  attainment  the  chief  end  of  all  human 
aspirations  and  efforts.  Disappointment  is  the  constant 
companion  of  this  universal  desire,  and  strews  the  earth 
with  blasted  hopes  and  ruined  expectations.  One  of 
the  most  noticeable  things  in  human  society  is  the 
struggle  going  on  everywhere  for  something  which  it  is 
supposed  will  make  its  possessor  happy,  and  the  almost 
universal  failure  and  fruitlessness  of  this  struggle. 
Looking  at  the  subject  from  an  abstract  point  of  view, 
something  appears  to  be  wrong  ;  for  it  is  reasonable  to 
suppose  that  the  Creator  of  this  general  desire  for  hap- 
piness has  also  created  a  corresponding  and  adequate 
capacity  and  way  for  its  gratification.  My  opinion  is 
that  very  much  of  the  unhappiness  in  the  world  is 
unnecessary,  and  might,  with  proper  effort  to  that  end, 
be  averted.  While  it  is  true  that  every  individual  is  to 
some  extent  under  the  control  and  influence  of  his 
environments,  it  is  also  true  that  these  environments 
are,  to  a  great  extent,  under  the  control  of  the  indi- 
vidual, so  far  as  the  enjoyments  or  sorrows  of  life  are 
concerned.  We  can  readily  see  that  a  large  proportion 
of  the  misery  of  the  world  is  due  to  the  wickedness, 


THE  VALUE  OF  GOOD  THOUGHTS.          107 

improvidence  and  folly  of  those  who  suffer,  and  might  be 
prevented  ;  and  that  those  misfortunes  which  are  inevit- 
able are  made  more  burdensome  and  grievous  than  they 
need  to  be.  There  are  two  sources  of  joy  and  sorrow  : 
one  is  the  external  circumstances  and  surroundings  of 
the  individual,  and  the  other  is  the  mental  condition  or 
workings  of  the  inner  man.  To  govern  and  control 
these  so  as  to  produce  joy,  and  avoid  sorrow  and  suffer- 
ing, is  the  end  to  which  all  of  us  look,  but  to  which 
comparatively  few  of  us  attain.  Assuming  that  you 
partake  of  the  universal  desire  to  be  happy,  the  briefest 
and  best  prescription  that  I  can  give  for  the  consum- 
mation of  your  wishes  is,  to  think  good  thoughts.  I 
take  it  for  granted,  in  giving  this  advice,  that  you  can 
control  your  thoughts  ;  although,  under  some  circum- 
stances, the  exercise  is  attended  with  great  difficulty. 
You  need  only  to  consult  your  own  consciousness  to 
know  that,  by  the  mere  exercise  of  your  will,  you  can 
think  of  the  past,  the  present,  or  the  future.  While 
you  sit  in  this  room,  you  can  think  of  events  that  occur- 
red years  ago,  or  of  a  distant  friend,  or  of  your  immedi- 
ate surroundings  ;  or  you  can  project  your  thoughts  into 
the  future,  and  the  far-away  realms  of  imagination. 
All  this  is  very  easy,  and  demonstrates,  to  a  certain 
extent,  the  dominion  of  the  will  over  the  thoughts  ;  but 
certain  physical  conditions  may  impair,  and  in  some 
cases  overcome,  this  power  of  the  will.  When  the  body 
is  suffering  from  severe  pain,  it  is  exceedingly  difficult, 
and  by  some  thought  to  be  impossible,  for  the  will  to 
produce  in  the  mind  an  unconsciousness  of  such  pain. 
Whether  the  sickness  or  pain  of  the  body  can  be  neu- 
tralized by  diverting  the  thoughts  to  other  matters,  is  a 
question  upon  which  there  is  a  diversity  of  opinion  ;  but 


108       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

there  can  be  no  doubt  that  under  certain  circumstances 
the  sufferings  of  the  body  may  be  increased  or  dimin- 
ished by  the  operations  of  the  mind.  Illustrative  of 
this,  it  is  said  that  certain  physicians  obtained  permis- 
sion to  experiment  with  a  criminal  condemned  to  death, 
and,  after  putting  him  in  a  dungeon  where  he  could  not 
see,  and  telling  him  that  he  was  to  suffer  death  by 
bleeding,  made  an  incision  into  his  flesh,  having 
arranged  that  dripping  water  should  fall  into  a  vessel 
to  sound  like  the  flow  of  blood  ;  the  result  of  which 
was,  as  it  is  said,  that  the  man  actually  died  from  the 
thought  that  he  was  bleeding  to  death,  when,  in  fact, 
he  was  losing  little  or  no  blood. 

To  say  that  the  condition  of  the  body  is  nothing  more 
or  less  than  a  material  expression  of  the  condition  of  the 
mind  may  not  be  strictly  accurate  ;  but  this  I  do  affirm 
as  absolutely  true,  that  good  and  happy  thoughts  are 
conducive  to  good  health,  and  evil  and  unhappy 
thoughts  tend  to  bodily  infirmities.  Numerous  instances 
are  recorded  where  persons  wasting  away  under  a  mel- 
ancholy state  of  mind  have  been  restored  to  health  by  a 
change  in  the  character  of  their  thoughts.  It  is  a  mat- 
ter of  common  observation  that  mental  troubles  impair 
physical  strength,  and  draw  to  them  debility,  disease, 
and  sometimes  self-destruction.  To  medicate  the  mind 
with  cheerful  words  and  exhilarating  thoughts,  is  in 
many,  if  not  most  cases,  more  effective  as  a  remedy  than 
the  medication  of  the  body  with  drugs.  I  hold  it  to  be 
the  duty  of  every  physician,  whatever  his  private  opin- 
ion may  be,  to  speak  hopeful  and  encouraging  words  to 
his  patient,  and,  if  possible,  stimulate  his  recuperative 
powers  with  the  hope  of  recovery.  Some  good  people 
consider  it  their  duty  to  impress  the  sick  with  an  idea  of 


THE  VALUE  OF  GOOD  THOUGHTS.  109 

impending  death,  so  that  they  may  be  prepared  to  die  ; 
but  in  so  doing  they  are  ministering  to  despair  and 
helping  disease  to  do  its  deadly  work.  Common  sense 
teaches  us  that  when  a  sick  person  lets  go  his  hold  upon 
life,  death  has  a  more  easy  victory  than  it  would  have  if 
it  encountered  faith,  hope  and  courage  in  its  struggle 
for  the  ascendancy. 

Faith  cure,  as  it  is  called,  may  not  be  all  that  is 
claimed  for  it  ;  but,  beyond  question,  it  has  raised  multi- 
tudes from  beds  of  languishing  and  pain  by  the  power 
of  the  mind  or  spirit  over  the  body.  "  According  to 
your  faith,  be  it  unto  you,"  is  a  revelation  and  promise 
from  infinite  Wisdom  and  Power.  Faith  is  the  Archi- 
medean lever  that  moves  the  world.  Faith  convoyed 
Columbus  to  the  discovery  of  a  western  hemisphere. 
Faith  spans  oceans  with  telegraphs  and  continents  with 
railroads.  Faith  has  founded  empires  and  won  great 
victories.  Faith  is  the  inspiration  of  every  great  inven- 
tion and  every  great  enterprise  ;  and  without  faith  the 
dead  level  of  animal  life  would  hardly  be  disturbed. 
Faith  is  defined  to  be  "  the  substance  of  things  hoped 
for,  the  evidence  of  things  not  seen;"  which  is  a 
summary  way  of  describing  life  in  the  world  of  thought 
brightened  by  the  promise  of  hope.  Faith  in  God,  faith 
in  man,  and  faith  in  the  good,  the  true  and  the  beauti- 
ful, are  elements  of  exalted  and  refined  pleasures. 

No  mistake  is  so  fatal  to  our  happiness  as  to  neglect 
the  operations  of  our  minds.  We  do  not  sufficiently 
appreciate  the  influence  of  our  thoughts  upon  our  lives. 
We  depend  too  much  upon  our  physical  sensations. 
Take  care  of  your  thoughts,  and  your  bodies  will  take 
care  of  themselves  ;  or,  to  be  more  accurate,  take  care 
of  your  thoughts,  and  your  thoughts  will  take  care  of 


110       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

your  bodies.  To  cultivate  the  intellect  by  the  acquisi- 
tion of  knowledge  is  an  inconsiderable  part  of  such  an 
education  as  will  impart  happiness  to  its  possessor. 
John  Bunyan,  the  poor,  illiterate  and  imprisoned 
preacher,  was  a  happier  man  than  David  Hume,  the 
great,  learned  and  honored  historian.  True  happiness 
consists  in  having  your  minds  occupied  with  good,  just 
and  pure  thoughts  ;  and  if  your  minds  are  filled  with 
such  thoughts,  your  bodily  surroundings  are  of  no  great 
consequence.  This  power  of  controlling  the  thoughts, 
especially  under  adverse  circumstances,  is  not  intuitive  ; 
nor  is  it  easily  acquired.  lyike  other  accomplishments 
of  the  mind  and  body,  it  comes  through  cultivation 
and  discipline.  Our  minds,  untrained,  have  a  tendency 
to  produce  evil  thoughts,  like  the  tendency  of  the 
untilled  earth  to  produce  wild  grasses  and  weeds. 
Avarice,  envy,  jealousy,  hatred,  malice,  discontent  and 
fear,  are  names  given  to  classify  those  different  condi- 
tions of  the  mind  from  which  proceed  a  great  part  of 
the  unhappiness  of  the  human  family.  To  overcome 
and  put  an  end  to  these  mental  conditions  is  like  the 
fight  of  Hercules  with  the  hydra  ;  but  in  this  fight,  as  in 
that,  perseverance  will  achieve  success.  One  person  is 
born  in  poverty,  and  bound  by  circumstances  beyond 
his  control  to  a  life  of  obscurity  and  toil.  Another  is 
born  in  affluence,  and  inherits  distinction  and  ease. 
Very  often  the  former  is  discontented  and  depressed 
with  his  lot,  and  his  life  is  poisoned  with  envy  of  the 
latter  ;  when,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  there  may  not  be,  and 
in  a  majority  of  cases  is  not,  any  good  ground  for  this 
unhappiness.  It  is  misery  made  out  of  nothing  but 
perverted  thoughts.  When  a  poor  man,  in  good  health, 
has  all  that  he  needs  to  eat,  drink  and  to  wear,  he  has 


THE  VALUE  OF  GOOD  THOUGHTS.  Ill 

about  all  a  rich  man  can  get  out  of  his  wealth,  so  far  as 
bodily  enjoyments  are  concerned.  The  air  is  as  fresh 
and  pure,  and  the  sunshine  as  bright  and  warm,  to  the 
poor  as  to  the  rich.  All  the  glories  of  the  heavens  and 
all  the  beauties  of  the  earth  are  as  free  to  the  poor  as 
the  rich.  God  is  no  respecter  of  persons,  and  all  His 
wondrous  works  are  for  the  equal  good  and  pleasure  of 
all  His  children.  Moreover,  it  does  not  follow  that 
because  a  man  is  rich,  he  is  happy  ;  for  happiness  does 
not  depend  so  much  upon  external  circumstances  as 
upon  mental  conditions,  and  it  may  happen  that  the 
mind  of  the  man  with  millions  of  money  is  distracted 
with  care  and  trouble,  while  the  boy  who  blacks  his 
boots  is  happy  in  the  thought  of  better  days  to  come. 
Were  it  possible  to  look  into  the  thoughts  of  those 
around  us,  we  should  find  that  there  is  not  half  as  much 
difference  among  people,  so  far  as  their  happiness  is  con- 
cerned, as  there  seems  to  be.  Alexander  wept  for  other 
worlds  to  conquer,  but  Diogenes  was  contented  in  his 
tub.  Envious  thoughts  are  extremely  foolish,  for  they 
neither  help  the  envious  nor  hurt  the  envied.  They  only 
sting  the  brain  that  brings  them  into  being.  Our  great 
need  is  to  know  how  to  change  injurious  and  evil 
thoughts  into  those  that  give  us  pleasure  and  peace. 

To  know  this  is  to  have  more  wisdom  than  the  schools 
can  teach,  and  he  who  can  do  it  with  constancy  is 
greater  than  he  who  taketh  a  city.  We  must  learn  this 
great  lesson  by  positively  and  persistently  asserting  the 
supremacy  of  the  will  over  the  thoughts.  We  must  be 
diligent  in  the  exercise  of  this  will-power.  Self-exami- 
nation will  show  that,  as  a  general  rule,  our  wills  are 
allowed  to  be  dormant,  while  passion,  prejudice,  or  some 
exciting  circumstances  evolve  and  control  our  thoughts. 


112       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

Disuse  makes  our  wills,  like  our  limbs,  weak  and  ineffi- 
cient when  we  desire  to  use  them.  You  believe  that 
some  one  has  wronged  you,  in  consequence  of  which  you 
are  excited  with  angry  and  revengeful  thoughts.  To  get 
rid  of  these  thoughts  as  soon  as  possible  is  advisable, 
because  they  not  only  destroy  mental  serenity,  but  inau- 
gurate disorders  of  the  body.  To  do  this,  it  is  necessary 
to  substitute  pleasant  and  soothing  thoughts  for  those 
that  irritate  and  annoy.  Bring  up  from  the  storehouse 
of  memory  some  scene  to  which  your  affections  cling  : 
think  of  some  event  that  has  given  you  pleasure  or 
profit,  or  give  yourself  up  to  some  bright  dream  of  the 
future.  Drive  away  the  clouds,  and  enter  into  the  sun- 
light. Poe's  "Raven"  is  the  picture  of  a  mind  filled 
with  thoughts  of  sorrow,  gloom  and  death,  while  Wood- 
worth's  "Old  Oaken  Bucket"  is  the  picture  of  a  mind 
full  of  refreshing  and  grateful  memories.  To  substitute 
the  thoughts  that  inspired  the  song  of  Woodworth  for 
those  that  inspired  the  wail  of  Poe,  is  to  substitute  the 
oil  of  joy  for  the  ashes  of  mourning.  To  change  or 
divert  the  thoughts  from  that  which  is  evil  to  that  which 
is  good,  is  comparatively  easy  ;  but  the  difficulty  is  to 
maintain  the  change.  Bad  thoughts  are  always  striving 
for  the  mastery,  and  eternal  vigilance  is  necessary  to 
prevent  their  success.  To  try  this  experiment  involves 
a  mental  struggle.  There  will  be  failures  and  disappoint- 
ments ;  but  every  time  the  unconquered  will  brings  in 
good  thoughts,  it  gains  strength  for  the  next  conflict ;  and 
so,  by  persistent  efforts,  the  mind  is  released  from  dis- 
traction, and  made  the  citadel  of  contentment  and  peace. 
I  want  to  say  this  with  emphasis  :  Watch  the  coming 
and  going  of  your  thoughts,  and  whenever  you  perceive 
that  an  evil,  unkind  or  unhappy  thought  has  entered 


THE  VALUE  OF  GOOD  THOUGHTS.  113 

into  your  mind,  displace  it  at  once  with  something  that 
is  good,  kind  or  agreeable  ;  and  if  you  can  make  this 
the  fixed  habit  of  your  mind,  you  have  gained  what  is 
worth  more  to  your  happiness  than  all  "the  wealth  of 
Ormus  and  of  Ind. " 

Society  is  greatly  disturbed  by  individual  differences. 
Two  men  disagree,  and  each  thinks  the  other  is  wrong. 
Vituperation,  litigation  and  sometimes  personal  encoun- 
ters follow  from  such  differences.  I  have  had  more  or 
less  to  do  with  the  quarrels  of  men  for  nearly  fifty  years  ; 
and  the  result  of  my  observation  and  experience  is,  that 
a  great  part  of  these  disagreements  are  unnecessary,  and 
would  not  occur  if  people  did  not  act  without  reflection. 
I  have  no  right,  when  I  differ  with  another,  to  get  angry, 
and  act  from  passion  ;  but  it  is  my  duty  to  consider  that 
I  may  be  blinded  by  self-interest,  or  that  I  may  have 
been  misinformed,  or  may  have  misunderstood  what  has 
been  said  or  done,  and  I  ought  to  know  the  views  and 
thoughts  of  the  other  man  before  I  decide  upon  any 
definite  action.  Our  Lord  gave  us  good  advice  when  he 
said,  "Judge  not  according  to  the  appearance,  but  judge 
righteous  judgment."  You  will  be  better  satisfied  with 
yourselves,  and  add  to  your  happiness,  if  you  take  a 
charitable  instead  of  an  uncharitable  view  of  the 
motives  and  actions  of  other  people  :  though  you  may 
know  that  others  have  gone  wrong,  it  is  noble  and  gen- 
erous to  think  of  them  that  they  "have  but  stumbled  in 
the  path  you  have  in  weakness  trod."  What  a  world  of 
trouble  and  sorrow  would  be  prevented  if  people  would 
think  more  kindly  or  even  justly  of  each  other  ! 

Take  away  the  pleasures  of  imagination,  the  pleasures 
of  hope,  the  pleasures  of  faith,  and  the  pleasures  of 
memory,  and  but  little  more  than  the  animal  remains. 


114       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

How  much  of  the  enjoyments  of  youth  are  due  to  the 
glowing  visions  of  the  future  that  float  through  the  imag- 
ination !  Young  men  revel  in  imaginary  fortunes  and 
temples  of  fame,  and  young  women  dwell  with  loving 
hearts  in  imaginary  homes  of  domestic  bliss.  Some  people 
frown  upon  these  thoughts,  for  the  reason,  as  alleged, 
that  they  beget  false  notions  of  life  ;  but,  though  not 
generally  fully  realized,  they  as  often  as  otherwise  prove 
an  inspiration  to  high  deeds  and  unselfish  and  holy  duties. 
Imagination  is  not  to  be  crushed,  but  to  be  controlled 
and  cultivated.  To  live  in  the  regions  of  a  well- 
ordered  imagination  is  to  live  above  the  rough,  hard 
ways  of  the  world.  To  read  .the  works  of  Bulwer,  Scott 
and  Dickens,  and  similar  writings,  is  a  real  pleasure  ; 
and  to  hold  communion  with  the  beautiful  imagery  of 
the  poets  is  an  intellectual  luxury.  Dissipation,  how- 
ever, is  as  hurtful  in  this  as  in  other  habits  ;  and  purity 
in  reading,  as  well  as  purity  in  other  things,  is  essential 
to  lasting  happiness.  Take  as  an  antidote  for  trouble 
and  worry  of  mind  thoughts  like  these  : 

The  curfew  tolls  the  knell  of  parting  day  ; 

The  lowing  herd  winds  slowly  o'er  the  lea  ; 
The  ploughman  homeward  plods  his  weary  way, 

And  leaves  the  world  to  darkness  and  to  me. 

Now  fades  the  glimmering  landscape  on  the  sight, 

And  all  the  air  a  solemn  stillness  holds, 
Save  where  the  beetle  wheels  his  droning  flight, 

And  drowsy  tinklings  lull  the  distant  folds. 

What  a  fresh,  graphic,  soothing  picture  of  rural  life  is 
here  presented  !  Reared  as  I  was  in  the  country,  I  can 
almost  live  my  youth  over  again  in  these  inspired  lines. 
What  I  wish,  however,  particularly  to  say,  is  this  :  Fill 
your  minds  with  such  thoughts  as  are  suggested  in  these 
words  of  the  poet,  or  any  innocent  and  agreeable 


THE  VALUE  OF  GOOD  THOUGHTS.  115 

thoughts  ;  and  so  long  as  you  give  yourselves  up  to  their 
individual  sway,  you  may  stand  undisturbed  while  the 
waves  of  adversity  dash  and  break  at  your  feet. 

Everybody  is  praising  truth  ;  but  I  want  to  say  a  word 
here  for  what  are  called  the  delusions  of  life.  Who 
would  take  away  from  children  their  conceptions  of 
Santa  Claus,  or  those  little  works  of  fiction  which  they 
read  with  so  much  avidity  and  pleasure,  of  which  "Lit- 
tle Red  Riding  Hood"  is  an  example?  Who  would 
suppress  the  maternal  instincts  of  the  little  girl  by  rob- 
bing her  of  her  doll,  or  dispel  the  manly  conceits  of 
the  little  boy  in  riding  his  wooden  horse?  Visions  of 
love,  wealth  and  power  are  to  the  morning  of  life  what 
summer  breezes  and  the  singing  of  birds  are  to  the  ris- 
ing day,  and,  though  largely  delusive,  are  delightful 
while  they  last,  and  shed  their  fading  brightness  over 
the  sober  scenes  of  later  life.  I  have  lived  in  handsome 
houses  of  brick  and  stone,  and  held  high  positions  of  honor 
and  trust  ;  but  the  most  beautiful  houses  in  which  I  ever 
lived,  and  the  highest  honors  I  ever  enjoyed,  are  those 
which  an  unfledged  ambition  constructed  out  of  my 
boyhood  fancies. 

I  desire  to  impress  upon  your  minds  another  phase  of 
this  subject.  Whatever  your  circumstances  in  life  may 
be,  try  to  take  a  cheerful,  and  not  a  gloomy  view  of 
your  prospects  and  surroundings.  To  cultivate  a  cheer- 
ful disposition  or  state  of  mind,  is  not  only  to  cultivate 
your  own  happiness,  but  to  make  your  presence  like 
mingled  flowers  and  sunshine  to  your  family  and  friends. 
I  think  it  safe  to  say  that  more  than  one-half  of 
the  troubles  of  life  have  no  existence  outside  of  a  mis- 
guided or  morbid  state  of  mind.  Take,  as  an  illustra- 
tion, Shakes peare's  great  impersonation  in  Othello. 


116        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

Here  was  a  soldier,  honored  by  men  and  loved  by 
woman  for  his  great  deeds,  who  was  driven  by  false  and 
poisoned  thought  to  murder  a  true  and  loving  wife,  and 
then  to  commit  the  kindred  crime  of  suicide.  All  this 
was  the  outcome  of  thinking  evil  instead  of  good  of  one 
whose  virtue  and  purity  were  ignored  to  give  place  to  a 
base  suspicion.  There  is  no  greater  folly  than  to  brood 
despondently  over  some  mistake  or  misfortune  that  has 
passed  beyond  recall.  Try  always  to  encourage  yourself 
with  the  reflection  that  apparent  evils  are  frequently 
blessings  in  disguise.  Every  cloud,  it  is  said,  has  a 
silver  lining. 

Sad  are  the  sorrows  that  oftentimes  come, 

Heavy  and  dull  and  blighting  and  chill, 
Shutting  the  lights  from  our  hearts  and  our  homes, 

Marring  our  hopes  and  defying  our  will  ; 
But  let  us  not  sink  'neath  the  burden  of  woe, 

Perchance  it  is  well  we  are  troubled  and  bowed, 
For  be  sure,  though  it  may  not  be  seen  from  below, 

There's  a  silvery  lining  to  every  cloud. 

Looking  backward  over  the  ills  of  life  is  poor  busi- 
ness ;  but  to  look  forward  and  upward  with  faith  and 
hope  is  to  draw  down  from  heaven  some  of  the  choicest 
blessings. 

There  is  one  class  of  thoughts  to  which  I  beg  to 
direct  your  special  attention.  When  we  look  out  upon 
the  world,  we  see  that  great  numbers  of  people  are 
stricken  with  poverty,  or  are  sorrowing  under  the  weight 
of  some  misfortune  or  affliction.  Our  Lord  declared 
that  the  chief  object  of  His  Messiahship  was  to  preach 
His  gospel  to  such  people.  Great  multitudes  are 
chained  down  by  poverty  to  unremitting  toil,  without  a 
hope  or  a  prospect  of  any  change  in  their  circumstances. 
Men  and  things  can  do  [little  for  them,  and  the  only 


THE  VALUE  OF  GOOD  THOUGHTS.  117 

comfort  or  consolation  they  can  find,  if  they  find  any, 
is  in  their  own  thoughts.  Take,  for  illustration,  a  poor 
wife  and  mother  burdened  with  a  dissolute  husband 
and  needy  family.  She  has  a  heavy  load  to  carry. 
She  hears,  or  seems  to  hear,  a  gentle  voice  saying  unto 
her  :  "Come  unto  Me,  all  ye  that  are  weary  and  heavy 
laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest."  She  cannot  change 
her  external  circumstances  in  answer  to  this  voice.  She 
can  only  accept  the  invitation  in  her  thought.  She 
can  go  in  her  thought  to  Him  who  calls.  She  can  live 
with  Him  in  her  thought,  and  in  her  thought  find  the 
promised  rest.  She  can  find  strength  and  support  in 
the  consciousness  that  when  life's  troubles  are  ended, 
the  rich  in  faith,  though  poor  in  worldly  things,  have 
"an  inheritance  incorruptible,  undefiled,  and  that  fadeth 
not  away."  Such  thoughts  as  these  are  free  to  all, 
high  and  low,  rich  and  poor  ;  but  they  are  of  espe- 
cial value  to  the  poor.  Rich  people  can  diversify  their 
lives  with  recreations  and  amusements  of  various  kinds  ; 
but  those  who  labor  for  their  daily  bread  are  largely 
dependent  upon  their  daily  thoughts  for  refreshment 
and  rest  :  though  the  body  is  bound  to  the  earth,  the 
thought  may  be  in  heaven.  Where  can  the  mother, 
whose  heart  is  bleeding  from  the  loss  of  her  child,  find 
such  comfort  as  in  the  thought  of  being  reunited  to  her 
loved  one  in  another  and  better  world  ?  Our  Lord  has 
provided  for  the  poor  and  afflicted,  by  showing  them 
that,  if  they  will  make  their  thoughts  like  His  thoughts, 
they  will  have  a  wealth  of  peace  which  the  world  can- 
not give  or  take  away.  Some  people  profess  to  believe 
that  these  comforting  thoughts  arc  nothing  but  the 
vagaries  of  weak  and  sensitive  minds  ;  but,  be  this  as  it 
may,  they  have  lightened  the  burdens  of  many  weary 


118       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

souls  ;  and  it  is  safe  to  assume  that  they  will  be  found  to 
be  eternal  realities,  when  flesh  and  blood  have  mould- 
ered into  dust. 

Another  thing  to  be  mentioned,  in  considering  this 
subject,  is  this  :  Our  thoughts  affect  others,  favorably 
or  unfavorably,  as  they  affect  ourselves.  Good  thoughts 
exert  a  good  influence,  and  bad  thoughts  a  bad  influence, 
upon  those  around  us.  Some  philosophers  contend  that 
thought  is  as  much  a  substance  as  magnetism,  electric- 
ity or  heat  ;  and  the  analogies  of  this  argument  are  good, 
for  all  alike  are  intangible,  invisible  and  capable  of 
changing  and  controlling  material  things.  Actual 
experiments  have  demonstrated  that  thought  can  be 
transferred  from  one  mind  to  another  without  the  use 
of  any  visible  or  audible  signs  ;  and  it  is  therefore  a  rea- 
sonable conclusion  that  all  thoughts,  to  some  extent,  are 
common  to  all  minds.  Go  into  a  company  of  people 
whose  thoughts  are  pure,  bright  and  joyous,  and  then 
go  into  [-another  company  whose  thoughts  are  low,  hate- 
ful and'gloomy  ;  and,  though  nothing  be  said,  the  change 
will  be  perceptible  in  the  changed  condition  of  your 
own  thoughts.  One  little  spark  may  kindle  a  great 
fire  ;  and  one  new  and  vigorous  thought  may  set  in 
motion  a  great  thought-wave.  I  have  noticed,  in  the 
political  and  religious  world,  that  where  the  thought  in 
one  locality  drifted  in  a  certain  direction,  the  same  drift 
was  observed  in  other  and  remote  localities.  Language 
may  in  part  account  for  this  ;  but  results  indicate  that 
currents  of  thought  run  through  the  social  fabric,  like 
currents  of  electricity  through  the  unconscious  earth. 
When  the  spiritual  is  more  fully  developed,  and  the 
intellectual  becomes  more  apprehensive,  it  may  be  that 
the  telegraph  and  telephone  will  fall  into  disuse,  and 


THE  VALUE  OF  GOOD  THOUGHTS.  119 

mind  answer  to  mind,  and  thought  to  thought,  through 
a  medium  common  to  all.  Our  thinking  faculties  con- 
join us  to  the  Supreme  Intelligence  of  the  Universe. 
They  stamp  the  dust  of  the  earth  with  the  image  of  the 
Deity.  They  can  lift  us  to  the  pinnacles  of  human 
life.  They  can  do  more :  they  can  lift  us  up  to 
Heaven,  or  they  can  bear  us  down  the  endless  declivi- 
ties of  eternal  darkness.  Gird  up  the  loins  of  your 
minds.  Prepare  yourselves  for  the  smiles  and  frowns  of 
fortune.  Go  out,  with  faith  in  God,  into  the  field  of  duty, 
always  remembering  that  the  secret  of  a  happy  life  is  to 
think  good  thoughts. 


120       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 


EX-JUSTICE    BENJAMIN    R.   CURTIS. 


ADDRESS    UPON    HIS    DEATH,    DELIVERED    IN    THE    UNITED    STATES 
SUPREME    COURT,  OCTOBER    23,  1874. 


May  It  Please  the  Court :  Benjamin  R.  Curtis, 
formerly  an  associate  justice  of  this  court,  and  one  of 
the  most  distinguished  members  of  its  bar,  departed  this 
life  the  fifteenth  day  of  last  month,  and  his  profes- 
sional associates  here,  feeling  like  a  family  bereft  of  its 
head,  have  expressed  the  sense  of  their  bereavement  in 
fitting  resolutions,  which,  at  their  request,  I  have  now 
the  honor  to  present  to  this  court. 

Our  deceased  brother  was  born  at  Watertown,  Massa- 
chusetts, in  the  year  1809,  and  came  down  to  his  grave 
with  all  his  faculties  unimpaired  by  decay  or  the  infirm- 
ities of  age. 

I  can  only  speak  of  Judge  Curtis  as  a  lawyer  ;  and 
those  who  knew  him  in  that  capacity  will  not,  I  am  sure, 
charge  me  with  exaggeration  in  saying  that  all  that  has 
been  said  of  the  ablest  and  best  of  our  profession  may 
with  fitness  be  applied  to  him.  I  was  a  member  of  the 
High  Court  of  Impeachment  when  the  President  of  the 
United  States  was  put  upon  his  trial  before  that  body, 
and  had  therefore  an  excellent  opportunity  to  see  and 
hear  the  deceased,  who  was  the  leading  counsel  for  the 
defense  in  that  case.  The  late  Chief-Justice  presided. 
Senators  and  representatives  occupied  the  floor  of  the 
Senate,  and  distinguished  people  from  all  parts  of  the 
world  filled  its  galleries.  The  political  pulses  of  the 
nation  throbbed  with  intense  anxiety.  The  scene  was 
thrilling  and  historic. 


EX-JUSTICE  BENJAMIN  R.  CURTIS.  121 

When  the  prosecutors  had  submitted  their  evidence  in 
support  of  the  articles  of  impeachment,  Judge  Curtis 
followed  with  a  statement  of  the  respondent's  defense. 
I  was  greatly  impressed  with  his  presence.  When  he 
arose  to  speak,  he  seemed  to  be  the  personification  of 
solidity  and  strength.  Added  to  his  striking  features 
and  form,  he  had  a  peculiarly  firm  and  broad  way  of 
standing  while  he  spoke,  which  seemed  to  express  an 
inflexible  determination  not  to  be  moved  from  his  posi- 
tion. He  was  not  excited  or  embarrassed.  He  com- 
menced with  the  composure  of  conscious  power.  He 
presented  the  facts  and  points  of  the  case  in  such  a  com- 
prehensive, compact  and  logical  manner  as  to  make  the 
speech  a  model  of  forensic  discussion.  Brougham  or 
Burke  would  have  displayed  upon  that  occasion  a  wealth 
of  imagery  and  illustration,  but  the  language  of  Judge 
Curtis  was  as  pure  and  chaste  as  the  lectures  of  Black- 
stone. 

I  will  not  venture  to  say  that  our  departed  brother 
was  the  equal  of  Webster  ;  but  it  is  safe,  I  think,  to 
assert  that  he  was  more  like  Webster  than  any  man 
who  of  late  years,  if  ever,  appeared  in  this  court.  Some 
one  has  said  of  Lord  Mansfield,  that  his  statement  of  the 
facts  of  a  case  was  worth  the  argument  of  any  other 
man  ;  and  few  gentlemen  will  feel  disparaged,  I  presume, 
if  this  remark  is  made  applicable  to  Judge  Curtis.  His 
eminence  as  a  justice  of  this  court  has  been  universally 
acknowledged.  His  opinions  indicate  an  enlightened 
and  conscientious  judgment.  Masterly  expositions  of 
constitutional  law  have  been  given  from  time  to  time  by 
the  great  judges  of  this  court  ;  but  none  ever  delivered 
here  was  more  exhaustive  in  its  learning,  or  far- 
reaching  in  its  results,  than  his  dissenting  opinion 


122       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

in  the  Dred  Scott  case.  Chief-Justice  Taney  and 
his  associates,  excepting  Curtis  and  McLean,  labored 
with  great  ability  to  make  color  a  constitutional  cri- 
terion of  citizenship ;  but  Justice  Curtis,  with  a 
broader  appreciation  of  the  true  principles  of  our  gov- 
ernment, affirmed  that  the  free  native-born  citizens 
of  each  state  are  citizens  of  the  United  States  ;  and  on 
account  of  the  overwhelming  force  with  which  he  made 
the  reason  and  justice  of  this  declaration  to  appear,  the 
contrary  opinion  of  the  court  has  been  without  any  con- 
siderable weight  and  influence. 

Civil  war  has  since  followed  upon  this  and  cognate 
questions  ;  but  it  yet  remains  for  this  court  to  define  the 
rights,  immunities  and  privileges  of  citizens  of  the 
United  States,  and  to  determine  what  degree  of  pro- 
tection, as  such  citizens,  they  are  entitled  to  from  the 
government  of  the  United  States. 

Our  deceased  friend  was  not  distinguished  in  the  poli- 
tical world.  He  was  never  drawn  into  the  vortex  of 
partisan  strife  by  the  prospect  of  official  honors.  His 
ambition  was  to  be  a  great  and  successful  lawyer.  Seven- 
teen years  ago  he  gave  up  his  exalted  position  upon  the 
bench  of  this  court  to  resume  the  practice  of  his  profes- 
sion, and  since  then  he  has  hardly  been  equaled  in  the 
number  and  variety  of  the  great  causes  in  which  he  has 
appeared.  His  solid  and  massive  intellect  was  enriched 
by  acquisitions  from  every  branch  of  jurisprudence.  He 
argued  questions  as  to  the  functions  of  government,  the 
construction  of  statutes,  and  the  doctrines  of  the  unwrit- 
ten law,  with  an  equal  fullness  of  learning  and  profound- 
ness of  thought.  There  were  no  fanciful  quotations  or 
pomp  of  words  about  his  speeches.  They  were  as  plain 
and  simple  as  they  could  be.  This  is  the  highest  style 


EX-JUSTICE  BENJAMIN  R.  CURTIS.  123 

of  speaking  at  the  bar.  Weakness  of  argumentative 
power,  as  often  as  otherwise,  displays  itself  in  turgid  and 
showy  declamation  ;  but  to  make  each  word  a  necessary 
link  in  a  chain  of  logic  that  draws  and  binds  the  judg- 
ment of  the  hearer  to  the  conclusion  of  him  who  speaks, 
is  the  work  of  the  master  mind,  and  in  this  Judge  Curtis 
excelled.  Few  cases  come  before  this  court  in  which 
there  is  not  a  great  variety  of  debatable  points  —  some 
vital  and  others  incidental  to  the  controversy, —  and  very 
often  all  these  are  discussed  as  though  there  was  no 
difference  in  their  value  ;  but,  in  addition  to  his  other 
fine  faculties,  Judge  Curtis  had  the  power  to  detect  and 
eliminate  from  the  collaterals  of  a  case  its  decisive  issues, 
and  with  these  alone  he  occupied  the  time  of  the  court. 

I  would  not  seek  vainly  to  pour  flattery  into  the 
"dull,  cold  ear  of  death,"  or  seem  to  praise  one  who 
is  dead,  as  though  he  had  none  of  the  infirmities  of 
human  nature  ;  but,  leaving  out  of  view  his  personal, 
domestic  and  social  qualities  and  habits  ( of  which  I 
know  little  or  nothing ),  and  judging  only  from  his  pro- 
fessional character,  I  feel  at  liberty  to  say  that,  as  nearly 
as  any  one  I  ever  knew,  he  filled  the  measure  of  a  perfect 
lawyer.  When  an  intellect  so  highly  gifted  by  nature, 
and  so  developed  and  invigorated  by  discipline  and  cul- 
ture, is  extinguished,  society  as  well  as  friends  suffer  a 
great  loss, —  the  bench  and  the  bar  are  stricken  with  a 
real  sorrow. 

Our  sad  duties  to-day  forcibly  remind  us  of  the  brev- 
ity of  human  life.  All  those  who,  with  Judge  Curtis, 
occupied  the  seats  now  filled  by  your  Honors,  are,  with 
one  exception,  dead  ;  but  they  are  not  forgotten,  and 
will  not  be,  so  long  as  in  this  supreme  tribunal  of  justice 
questions  relating  to  the  powers  of  government,  the 


124        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

relations  of  states,  and  the  rights  of  citizens,  are  argued 
and  decided.  No  more  forever  will  they  be  seen  here, 
but  their  words  of  wisdom  and  authority  remain. 
Grateful  memories  silently  linger  around  their  recorded 
opinions.  Our  successors  and  those  who  come  after 
them  will,  as  we  do  now,  ponder  over  their  imperish- 
able thoughts  with  interest  and  profit.  Humbly  fol- 
lowing their  example  and  emulating  their  virtues,  we 
may  hope  that,  when  our  time  comes  to  go  from  this 
earthly  court  to  a  higher  judgment-seat,  we  can  look 
cheerfully  into  the  Great  Hereafter,  and,  like  them,  too, 
leave  behind  us  "footprints  in  the  sands  of  Time." 


JUDGE  LORENZO  SAWYER.  125 


JUDGE    LORENZO    SAWYER. 


ADDRESS    UPON    HIS    DEATH.    DELIVERED    AT    PORTLAND,    OREGON, 
OCTOBER  5.  1891. 


I  have  been  requested  to  present  to  your  Honor  the 
resolutions  adopted  by  the  bar  of  this  city  relative  to  the 
death  of  Judge  Sawyer,  and  ask  that  they  be  spread 
upon  the  records  of  this  court.  I  desire  to  supplement 
these  resolutions  with  an  expression  of  my  personal  loss 
and  sorrow  in  the  death  of  this  eminent  jurist.  My 
relations  with  Judge  Sawyer  were  as  agreeable  and  inti- 
mate as  they  well  could  be  between  persons  residing  a 
long  distance  apart.  He  never  failed  to  spend  an  even- 
ing or  two  at  my  house,  and  to  dine  at  my  table,  when 
he  came  to  Portland  ;  and  he  was  always  not  only  a  wel- 
come, but  most  enjoyable  guest.  His  death  has  made  a 
vacancy  in  the  judiciary  of  the  Pacific  Coast  that  is  hard 
to  fill. 

Judge  Sawyer's  career  is  both  a  commentary  upon  the 
excellence  of  our  institutions,  and  an  inspiration  to 
those  who,  under  adverse  circumstances,  in  early  life 
aspire  to  positions  of  usefulness  and  distinction.  Com- 
mencing as  a  laborer  upon  a  farm  in  northern  New  York, 
he  developed  from  a  scholar  to  a  teacher  in  a  common 
school,  then  worked  his  way  through  college,  devoting, 
meanwhile,  his  spare  time  to  the  study  of  law  ;  after- 
wards a  miner,  then  a  practising  lawyer,  then  a  state 
judge,  and  finally,  for  more  than  twenty  years,  judge  of 
the  Ninth  Judicial  Circuit  of  the  United  States.  He 
crossed  the  plains  to  California  in  1S50,  at  the  beginning 
of  the  formative  period  of  government  and  society  in 


126       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

that  state.  Reckless  and  vicious  living,  so  common 
there  at  that  time,  had  no  charms  for  him.  His  sturdy 
virtue  withstood  all  its  allurements.  His  personal,  pro- 
fessional and  official  influence  was  always  on  the  side  of 
uprightness  and  morality. 

No  individual  has  made  a  deeper  or  more  lasting 
impression  upon  the  institutions  of  California  than 
Judge  Sawyer.  When  the  state  was  admitted  into  the 
Union,  law  and  order  were  desperately  involved  in  a 
struggle  with  commotion  and  excitement.  Judge  Saw- 
yer soon  after  became  a  conspicuous  actor  in  these 
scenes.  He  laid  his  hand  upon  lawlessness,  and  it  stood 
still.  He  confronted  disorder,  and  it  retired.  He  spoke 
to  the  stormy  elements,  and  they  obeyed  his  voice.  He 
was  appointed  to  a  judicial  position  in  1862,  and  for 
nearly  thirty  years  —  unmoved  by  passion,  clamor  or 
prejudice  —  held  the  scales  of  justice  with  a  firm  and 
steady  hand.  Prominent  among  his  other  qualifications 
for  a  judge  was  his  perfect  fearlessness.  He  had  the 
moral  courage  to  do  what  he  thought  was  right  under 
all  circumstances.  When  the  tide  of  popular  prejudice 
ran  high  against  the  Chinese,  threatening  them  with 
mob  violence,  he  stood  forth,  the  impersonation  of  the 
majesty  and  power  of  the  law,  and  said  to  the  mad 
wave  :  "  Thus  far  shalt  thou  come,  and  no  further  !  " 
And  so,  when  popular  clamor  demanded  that  the  great 
and  rich  corporations  of  California  should  be  stripped  of 
their  legal  rights,  he  lifted  up  the  shield  of  the  Consti- 
tution, and  the  voice  of  the  spoiler  died  away  into  an 
impotent  murmur  of  disappointment  and  rage. 

I  cannot  better  describe  the  judicial  administration  of 
Judge  Sawyer  than  to  quote  from  an  eloquent  speech 
made  by  him  in  1868,  in  which  he  said  :- 


JUDGE  LORENZO  SAWYER.  127 

"There can  be  no  assured  enjoyment  of  civil  liberty, 
no  social  security,  no  permanently  advanced  stage  in 
the  development  of  our  race,  no  stability  in  the  institu- 
tions of  civilization,  where  there  is  no  honest,  effective 
and  fearless  administration  of  the  law, — where  the  foun- 
tain of  justice  is  not  pure,  and  where  its  stream  is  not 
allowed  to  flow  freely  and  without  obstruction,  and 
unaffected  by  disturbing  influences.  On  the  other  hand, 
wherever  the  laws  are  faithfully  administered  by  a  cap- 
able, independent  and  fearless  judiciary, —  wherever 
strict  justice  is  meted  out  to  every  individual,  whether 
rich  or  poor,  high  or  low, —  wherever  the  thatched  cot- 
tage of  the  lowest-born  is  the  castle  of  the  proprietor, 
which,  while  the  winds  and  rain  may  enter,  the  king 
may  not, —  wherever  the  judiciary  is  no  respecter  of  per- 
sons, always  holding  the  scales  of  justice  with  an  eye 
single  to  the  trepidations  of  the  balance  ;  there  no  rem- 
nant of  barbarism  will  be  found.  In  the  words  of  one 
who  clothed  his  great  thoughts  in  language  second  only 
in  terseness  and  felicity  of  expression  to  that  of  Him 
who  spake  as  never  man  spake,  'Justice  is  the  great 
interest  of  man  on  earth.'  It  is  the  ligament  which 
holds  civilized  beings  and  civilized  nations  together. 
Wherever  her  temple  stands,  and  so  long  as  it  is  duly 
honored,  there  is  a  foundation  for  social  security,  general 
happiness,  and  the  improvement  and  progress  of  our 
race.  And  whoever  labors  on  this  edifice  with  useful- 
ness and  distinction,  whoever  clears  its  foundations, 
strengthens  its  pillars,  adorns  its  entablatures,  or  contri- 
butes to  raise  its  august  dome  still  higher  in  the  skies, 
connects  himself  in  name  and  fame  and  character  with 
that  which  is  and  must  be  as  durable  as  the  frame  of 
human  society." 


128       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

Such  sentiments  as  these  were  creditable  alike  to  the 
head  and  heart  of  our  departed  friend.  They  ought  to 
be  emblazoned  upon  the  commission  of  every  judge  in 
the  United  States.  Possibly  it  may  be  a  fancy  of  mine, 
but  I  cannot  get  rid  of  the  impression  that  the  opinions 
of  the  Supreme  Court  of  California,  while  Sawyer  was 
on  that  bench,  and  especially  while  he  was  Chief-Justice, 
were  more  carefully  prepared,  and  carry  with  them  more 
weight,  than  those  delivered  by  that  court  at  any  other 
time  in  its  history.  Those  opinions  show  exhaustive 
research,  and,  what  is  of  great  importance  in  the  deci- 
sion of  a  supreme  court,  a  studied  care  in  the  use  of 
language.  Spanish  grants  gave  rise  to  numerous  law- 
suits about  land  titles  in  California,  many  of  which 
came  before  Judge  Sawyer  for  adjudication.  Some  of 
these  cases  involved  vast  and  valuable  tracts  of  country, 
and,  on  account  of  the  frauds  and  forgeries  common  to 
that  sort  of  litigation,  required  great  patience,  labor  and 
good  judgment  in  their  determination.  I  do  not  now 
recall  any  of  these  cases  in  which  his  judgment  was 
reversed  by  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States.  I 
believe  it  is  safe  to  say  that  the  decisions  of  no  circuit 
judge  have  stood  the  test  of  the  review  in  that  court 
better  than  those  of  Judge  Sawyer. 

One  year  more  than  three-score  years  and  ten  of  life, 
and  more  than  twenty  years'  service  as  a  Federal  judge, 
entitled  him  to  private  life  with  his  salary  continued, 
and  for  this  he  had  made  all  his  arrangements  ;  but  it 
seemed  good  to  the  Great  Disposer  of  events  that  his 
days  should  end  with  his  official  career.  "  Like  one  who 
lies  down  to  pleasant  dreams,"  a  good  citizen,  an  able, 
honest  and  impartial  judge,  a  faithful  father  and  friend, 
has  passed  into  the  land  of  shadows  and  silence  ;  but 
Hope,  trembling  over  the  darkness  of  his  grave,  clings 
to  the  assurance  that 

"  After  midnight  cometh  morn." 


THE  OREGON  &  CALIFORNIA  RAILROAD.     129 


THE    OREGON    &    CALIFORNIA    RAILROAD. 


ADDRESS    UPON    ITS  COMPLETION.    DELIVERED    AT    PORTLAND, 
OREGON,  DECEMBER  2O,  1887. 


Mr.  Chairman,  Ladies  and  Gentlemen  :  E  pluri- 
bus  unum  are  words  of  union  inscribed  upon  the  flag 
of  our  country,  and  every  mile  of  railroad  constructed 
in  the  United  States  helps  to  make  good  these  words  of 
greatness  and  glory. 

Blood  has  been  spilled  upon  a  hundred  battle-fields  to 
create  and  continue  the  Federal  Union,  but  now  the  age 
of  steam  and  iron  has  come,  with  its  powerful  and  peace- 
ful agencies,  to  secure  and  confirm  the  sacrifices  and 
triumphs  of  patriotism.  Prophecy,  in  its  hopeful  imag- 
ery, has  conceived  of  a  possible  time  when  the  sword  and 
the  spear  will  be  beaten  into  the  ploughshare  and  prun- 
ing hook,  but  the  period  has  actually  arrived  when  the 
soldier  surrenders  to  the  engineer,  and  the  rush  of  artil- 
lery is  supplanted  by  the  rattle  of  the  railway  train. 

To  paraphrase  a  poetical  expression,  I  may  say  that 
the  lever  of  the  locomotive,  in  the  hands  of  one  entirely 
fit,  is  "  mightier  than  the  sword."  Many  happy  influ- 
ences are  at  work  to  consolidate  the  American  Union, 
but  the  railway  and  telegraph  systems  of  the  United 
States  are  more  powerful  to  this  end  than  all  other  influ- 
ences combined. 

State  sovereignty,  though  not  dethroned,  sits  with 
iron  bands  upon  its  arms,  with  the  lightning  of  the  tele- 
graph playing  around  its  head. 

Railway  trains  are  thundering  in  our  towns  and  cities 
that,  though  separated  by  lines  upon  the  map,  upon  the 


130        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE   H.  WILLIAMS. 

solid  earth  we  are  one  and  indivisible  ;  and  telegraphs 
everywhere  are  whispering  in  the  ears  of  the  people  the 
admonitory  words,  "United  we  stand,  divided  we  fall." 

Putting  iron  into  the  metaphor,  it  may  be  said 
that  our  country  has  no  north  or  south,  east  or  west. 
Steam  power  tramples  under  its  hot  heels  all  sections 
and  divisions  of  the  country.  Traveling  like  the  wind, 
it  hurries  the  snow  and  ice  of  a  northern  winter  into  the 
melting  rays  of  a  southern  sun  ;  and  before  their  bloom 
can  fade,  it  whirls  the  flowers  of  the  sunny  South  into 
the  freezing  winds  of  a  northern  sky.  Railroads  have 
made  near  neighbors  of  the  two  oceans,  though  a  conti- 
nent stretches  between,  and  Neptune  humbly  lays  his 
trident  at  the  feet  of  the  iron  king.  Politically,  com- 
mercially and  socially,  steam  and  electricity  have  made 
the  many  into  one.  Party  leaders  may  invoke  sectional 
prejudice  and  state  pride  for  party  effects  ;  but  the  elec- 
tric spark  explodes  their  schemes,  and  the  loud-mouthed 
whistle  of  the  locomotives  stifles  their  selfish  and  feeble 
cries.  Trains  of  cars  upon  our  railroads  are  as  indiffer- 
ent to  political  and  territorial  distinctions  as  ships  upon 
the  billows  of  the  ocean.  Rapid  transit  changes  the 
otherwise  formal  and  distant  connections  of  business 
into  relations  of  intimacy  and  friendship.  New  Eng- 
land factories  and  the  cotton-fields  of  the  South  are  at 
each  others'  doors,  and  New  York  and  San  Francisco  are 
co-operative  members  of  a  municipal  union  as  well  as 
competitors  in  trade. 

Iron  and  steel  have  become  the  silken  cords  of  social 
intercourse  and  unity.  Distance  has  lost  much  of  its 
power  to  divide  friends  and  families  :  everybody  is 
everywhere  at  home,  with  the  telegraph  for  communica- 
tion. Love  speaks  to  love,  and  quick  sympathy  reaches 


THE  OREGON  &  CALIFORNIA  RAILROAD.     131 

the  sorrowing  through  a  flash  along  the  electric  wires. 
Remote  districts  are  brought  together  by  railroads. 
Friendly  relations  are  established  and  preserved  by  fre- 
quent meetings,  and  neighboring  communities  are  har- 
monized by  an  easy  interchange  of  civilities.  Whenever 
sections  or  localities  quarrel,  it  is  often  as  otherwise 
because  they  are  comparative  strangers,  and  ignorant  of 
each  others'  feelings  and  actions.  Our  prejudices  fre- 
quently lead  us  to  look  upon  those  as  enemies,  whom, 
with  a  better  understanding  of  their  motives  and  cir- 
cumstances, we  might  regard  as  friends.  Acquaintance- 
ship and  association  tend  to  assimilate  and  unify  com- 
munities and  states.  Tides  of  travel  flow  in  all  direc- 
tions over  our  railroads,  and,  intermingling,  crystalize 
into  homogeneous  bodies  of  people.  Imagination  can- 
not depict  the  disorders  and  disasters  that  would  befall  the 
country,  if  railroads  and  telegraphs,  by  a  sudden  blow, 
were  to  be  stricken  out  of  existence. 

No  people  of  the  United  States  are  more  indebted  to 
railroads  and  telegraphs  for  prosperity  and  happiness 
than  the  people  of  the  Pacific  Coast.  Thirty  years  ago, 
thousands  of  miles  intervened  between  the  Atlantic 
states  and  the  shores  of  the  Pacific,  with  hardly  a  human 
habitation  to  break  the  monotonous  solitude.  Some 
were  bold  enough  to  encounter  the  perils  and  hardships 
of  a  journey  across  the  plains  ;  but  generally  travel,  as 
well  as  traffic,  wended  its  weary  way  around  Cape  Horn 
or  across  the  murky  isthmus  of  Darien.  Weeks  and 
months  were  then  occupied  in  bringing  about  what  is 
now  accomplished  in  hours  and  days.  Ghostly  reminis- 
cences of  those  times  come  back  to  us  who  were  living 
here  then,  but  the  realities  are  "gone,  glimmering 
through  the  dream  of  things  that  were."  Ox- wagons 


132        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

toiling  through  heat  and  dust  ;  stage-coaches  fleeing 
from  Indian  outbreaks  ;  immigrant  ships  freighted  with 
impatient  seekers  for  gold,  —  have  dwindled  away  before 
our  vision  into  the  shadows  of  departed  things.  Steam 
transportation  has  worked  out  these  marvelous  results. 

Certain  citizens  of  California,  prominent  among  whom 
was  one  of  the  present  senators  in  Congress  from  that 
state,  commenced  in  1863,  at  Sacramento,  to  build  a 
transcontinental  railroad.  They  were  met  at  the  outset 
by  difficulties  that  to  most  men  seemed  insurmountable. 
Sectional  strife  had  developed  into  a  civil  war.  Credit 
was  weak  and  crippled,  and  capital  was  afraid  to  move. 
Doubts  and  fears  hung  like  a  black  cloud  over  the  uncer- 
tain future.  Confronting  them  at  the  threshold  were 
the  Sierra  Nevada  Mountains,  whose  rugged  and  rocky 
brows  frowned  defiance  upon  the  enterprise  ;  and  beyond 
these  lay  the  discouraging  prospect  of  a  bleak  and  deso- 
late country.  Faith,  however,  triumphed  then,  as  it  has 
thousands  of  times  in  the  history  of  the  world,  over  the 
weakness  of  men  and  the  obstacles  of  nature.  Faith 
inspired  Columbus  to  the  discovery  of  a  new  world  : 
faith  trusted  the  depths  of  the  ocean  with  the  Atlantic 
cable  :  faith  has  revealed  the  wonders  of  the  telegraph, 
telephone  and  phonograph  :  faith,  with  indomitable 
energy,  completed  the  California  Central  Railroad  to  a 
connection  with  the  Union  Pacific,  thus  making  a  con- 
tinuous railway  from  the  Pacific  to  the  Atlantic  Ocean. 
Considering  all  that  has  been  accomplished  in  this  age, 
it  seems  doubtful  whether  there  is  anything,  in  the  vis- 
ible or  invisible  world,  beyond  the  reach  of  faith  in  God 
and  the  capabilities  of  man. 

On  the  2d  of  July,  1864,  Congress  made  a  munificent 
grant  of  lands  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a  North 


THE  OREGON  &  CALIFORNIA  RAILROAD.     133 

Pacific  railroad.  The  people  of  the  Northwest  looked  to 
this  road  for  relief  from  their  isolated  condition,  but 
their  hopes  were  deferred  and  their  hearts  made  sick  by 
the  disappointments  and  delays  that  attended  the  work. 
While  timid  men  were  tinkering  and  paltering  with  their 
petty  schemes,  and  demagogues  were  howling  for  a  repeal 
of  the  land  grant,  a  man  appeared  upon  the  scene  whose 
genius,  courage  and  energy  pushed  this  magnificent 
enterprise  through  to  its  long-desired  completion.  New 
York,  Chicago  and  Portland  were  made  kindred  by  this 
great  railway,  and  every  twenty-four  hours  contribute 
their  treasures  of  trade  and  travel  to  each  others'  wealth 
and  prosperity.  Down  beyond  the  regions  of  frost  and 
snow,  the  Southern  Pacific  spans  the  continent  ;  and 
north,  where  the  eternal  glaciers  repose  in  cold  sublim- 
ity, the  Canadian  Pacific  stretches  from  ocean  to  ocean. 
Other  transcontinental  railroads  are  projected  or  in  pro- 
gress, and  it  seems  as  though  the  surface  of  the  round 
earth,  upon  this  continent,  was  to  be  bound  to  its  founda- 
tions by  hoops  of  iron  and  steel.  All  of  these  railroads 
are  prophetic  of  the  mighty  empire  that  is  to  be  upon 
this  coast.  We,  who  are  here  to-day,  are  only  the  van- 
guard of  advancing  millions.  Europe  is  moving  west- 
ward, and  Asia  is  moving  eastward,  and  the  tides  of 
population  are  meeting  upon  these  shores.  Railway 
cars  crossing  the  land  come  to  our  cities,  and  ships  cross- 
ing the  ocean  come  to  our  ports  ;  but  on  our  mountain 
peaks  there  is  a  greater  than  Canute  saying  to  each, 
"Thus  far  shall  thou  come,  and  no  further." 

Thirty  years  ago,  Oregon,  in  a  political  sense,  was 
admitted  into  the  Union  ;  but  otherwise  she  was  like  an 
adopted  daughter,  debarred  of  the  privileges  and  enjoy- 
ments of  familv  and  home.  On  one  side  was  a  wild 


134       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

territory  of  mountains  and  uninhabited  plains  ;  on  the 
other,  the  expanded  waste  of  a  trackless  ocean.  Com- 
munications by  the  sea  came  as  often  as  the  moon  filled 
her  horn,  but  moon  after  moon  waxed  and  waned  while 
they  were  traveling  across  the  land.  Most  of  our  people 
were  immigrants  from  the  old  states,  with  ties  of  kin- 
dred and  home  unbroken  by  distance  ;  and  not  a  few  grew 
restive  under  the  comparative  seclusion  from  the  rest  of 
the  world.  When  they  looked  to  the  east,  a  vast  wilder- 
ness seemed  to  shut  out  all  hope  in  that  direction  ;  and 
when  they  looked  to  the  west,  they  only  saw  their  own 
weakness  reflected  in  the  bosom  of  the  broad  Pacific. 
California  was  then  a  young  state,  and  some  of  our  citi- 
zens had  tried  their  fortunes  in  its  golden  sands.  Cut 
off  as  we  were  from  the  civilized  world,  our  thoughts 
naturally  turned  to  the  only  other  state  upon  the  Pacific 
Coast  for  relief  and  consolation.  Accordingly,  a  number 
of  Oregonians  associated  themselves  together  under  the 
name  of  the  Oregon  Central  Railroad  Company.  This 
corporation  was  without  money,  means  or  credit  ;  but  it 
was  the  beginning  of  an  enterprise  whose  beneficial 
results,  reaching  through  revolving  years,  can  only  be 
fully  known  to  future  generations.  Congress,  in  1866, 
granted  lands  to  aid  in  the  construction  of  a  railroad 
and  telegraph  line  from  the  Central  Pacific  in  California 
to  Portland,  Oregon.  Work  was  commenced  in  1868, 
and  150  miles  of  the  road  completed,  chiefly  through 
the  efforts  of  one  lately  deceased,  whose  name  is 
justly  associated  with  the  names  of  those  who,  by  their 
courage  and  energy,  have  contributed  to  the  develop- 
ment of  the  Pacific  Coast.  Like  many  other  enterprises 
of  a  like  nature,  the  Oregon  &  California  Railroad  pas- 
sed through  the  different  stages  of  suspension,  litigation 


THE  OREGON  &  CALIFORNIA  RAILROAD.     135 

and  insolvency,  till  it  fell  into  the  hands  of  those 
in  whose  bright  lexicon  there  is  no  such  word  as  fail. 
Twenty  years  ago  next  April,  the  soil  of  Oregon  was 
broken  for  this  road,  and  on  the  17th  day  of  December, 
1887,  the  last  rail  was  laid  and  the  last  spike  driven. 
Mountains  have  been  tunneled,  rivers  bridged,  the 
high  places  cut  down  and  the  low  places  leveled  up,  and 
a  lasting  monument  made  to  engineering  skill  and  well- 
directed  labor.  Iron  wheels,  starting  from  Portland,  can 
now  roll  their  precious  burdens  into  San  Francisco 
before  the  tinge  of  the  morning  rays  can  be  twice  seen 
upon  our  mountain  tops.  Transportation  between  Cali- 
fornia and  Oregon  has  heretofore  been  at  the  mercy  of 
the  winds  and  waves  of  the  ocean,  and  travel  between 
the  two  states  has  generally  been  accomplished  through 
the  perils  and  discomforts  of  a  voyage  at  sea.  Commer- 
cial intercourse  by  water  will  not  cease,  of  course,  but 
bars  and  breakers,  the  pitching  and  rolling  of  ships, 
will  be  a  matter  of  choice  to  those  who  love  such  things, 
and  not  one  of  the  necessities  of  travel  between  San 
Francisco  and  Portland.  Those  of  us  who  came  to  Ore- 
gon in  an  early  day,  can  appreciate  the  convenience  and 
comfort  of  railroad  travel.  To  sit  upon  a  cushioned 
seat  in  a  palace  car,  and  be  carried  along  strongly,  safely 
and  smoothly,  at  the  rate  of  a  mile  in  two  minutes,  is 
quite  a  different  thing  from  riding  a  cayuse  pony  in 
the  rain,  or  floundering  through  the  mud  in  a  stage 
wagon,  at  the  rate  of  three  miles  an  hour.  For  the 
greater  part  of  the  year,  a  journey  by  rail  from  Portland 
to  San  Francisco  is  an  episode  of  delightful  incidents. 
We  have  in  Oregon  the  Willamette,  Umpqua  and  Rogue 
River  valleys,  composedly  lying  between  the  Coast  and 
Cascade  ranges  of  mountains,  with  their  broad  cultivated 


136        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

fields  of  unvarying  freshness  and  fertility  ;  their  bright 
streams,  laid  like  silver  ribbons  upon  the  landscape  ; 
their  wooded  hills  and  grassy  vales  ;  their  attractive 
homes  and  flourishing  villages, —  a  picture,  three  hun- 
dred miles  long,  of  thrift,  comfort  and  beauty.  Climb- 
ing the  Siskiyou  Mountains,  with  their  granite  pin- 
nacles and  panoramic  views,  we  descend  into  the  varied 
and  picturesque  scenery  of  the  Sacramento  valley,  in 
full  view  of  Mount  Shasta,  over  whose  majestic  form 
eternal  winter  throws  its  spotless  robe,  and  thence  on 
through  a  land  of  sunshine,  flowers  and  fruits,  to  the 
city  of  the  Golden  Gate.  This  California  &  Oregon 
road  is  destined  to  be  a  great  thoroughfare.  It  is  the 
connecting  link  between  the  transcontinental  roads  of 
the  North  and  those  of  the  South.  To  travel  across  the 
continent  on  one  of  these  roads,  and  return  by  the 
other,  is  becoming  the  fashion  of  the  Eastern  world. 
Streams  of  people  pour  into  California  over  the  Central 
or  Southern  Pacific  roads,  with  a  tendency  to  flow  over 
the  California  &  Oregon  road  to  this  Northwestern 
country  ;  some  to  stay,  and  others  to  return  by  the 
Northern,  Short  Line  or  Canadian  Pacific  to  their  East- 
ern homes. 

California  and  Oregon,  by  the  construction  of  this 
road,  have  taken  each  other  for  better  or  worse,  and  are 
indissolubly  bound  together  in  the  bonds  of  a  common 
welfare.  Whatever  conduces  to  the  prosperity  of  one 
state  will  beneficially  affect  the  other,  and  both  will  be 
profited  by  what  we  may  expect  to  see, —  a  free  and 
generous  rivalry.  Embraced  within  these  two  states  is 
about  1000  miles  of  sea-coast  ;  and  if  there  is  room 
within  a  radius  of  500  miles  on  the  Atlantic  seaboard 
for  four  such  cities  as  Baltimore,  Philadelphia,  New 


THE  OREGON  &  CALIFORNIA  RAILROAD.     137 

York  and  Boston,  there  certainly  is  "ample  room  and 
verge  enough  "  in  these  two  states  for  the  growth  of 
two  great  commercial  cities, —  San  Francisco,  in  Califor- 
nia, and  Portland,  in  Oregon. 

Could  some  one  gifted  with  the  vision  of  Moses  from 
another  Mount  Pisgah  overlook  these  two  states,  he 
would  see  a  land  whose  riches  and  beauty  beggar  the 
fanciful  descriptions  of  romance  or  poetry.  A  land 
whose  mountains  teem  with  gold  and  silver, —  whose 
bosom  is  variegated  with  orange  groves  and  vineyards, 
wheat-fields  and  meadows,  flocks  and  herds, —  and  the 
grandeur  of  whose  scenery  is  the  wonder  and  admiration 
of  the  world.  Heaven  has  fixed  the  elements  of  our 
future  greatness  in  the  salubrity  and  softness  of  our 
climate,  the  riches  of  our  mines,  the  fertility  of  our  soil 
and  the  accessibility  of  our  ports,  into  which  the  winds 
of  the  Pacific  are  bound  to  waft  "the  wealth  of  Onnus 
and  of  Ind."  Whatever  else  may  follow  the  completion 
of  the  Oregon  &  California  Railroad,  it  will  certainly 
bring  the  citizens  of  both  states  into  a  closer  neighbor- 
hood. They  will  now  have  new  opportunities  to  culti- 
vate the  amenities  of  social  intercourse.  They  will 
find  it  a  pleasant  duty  to  reciprocate  acts  of  civility  and 
kindness.  They  will  see  each  other  more  and  know 
each  other  better.  The  representative  men  of  Califor- 
nia are  here  to-day  to  inaugurate  this  new  order  of 
things.  They  have  come  to  celebrate  a  great  commer- 
cial event,  and  visit  their  new  relations.  \Ve  are  here 
to  meet  them —  to  show  our  appreciation  of  their  kindly 
presence  -  to  extend  to  them  our  hospitalities  ;  and  it 
has  been  made  my  duty  on  behalf  of  our  people,  in  the 
performance  of  which  I  take  great  pleasure,  to  give  to 
each  one  and  all  of  these  distinguished  gentlemen  a 
cordial  and  heart v  welcome  to  the  Citv  of  Portland. 


138        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 


PORTLAND,  OREGON:  ITS  GROWTH  AND  PROSPECTS. 


ADDRESS  AT   THE  LAYING    OF    THE    CORNER-STONE   OF    THE    CHAM- 
BER OF   COMMERCE  BUILDING,  JANUARY  1,  1892. 


History  and  prophecy  are  sometimes  combined  in  the 
same  event.  Occasions  arise  when  a  review  of  the  past 
and  a  forecast  of  the  future  seem  to  struggle  for  simul- 
taneous utterance.  We  are  engaged  in  a  ceremony 
to-day  that  carries  our  thoughts  back  to  the  infancy  of 
our  city,  and  at  the  same  time  brings  before  our  minds 
visions  of  its  future  growth  and  greatness.  There 
seems  to  be  something  inexplicable  in  the  growth  of 
great  cities.  It  is  not  unusual  for  several  localities 
aspiring  to  city  distinction  to  start  with  equal  advan- 
tages, and  while  one  succeeds  beyond  all  expectations, 
the  others  sink  down  into  weakness  and  obscurity.  This 
result  is  accounted  for  in  various  ways,  none  of  which 
are  quite  satisfactory.  Palmyra,  we  are  told,  was  a 
great  city  in  a  surrounding  desert.  What  good  reason 
can  be  given  why  London,  situated  on  a  small  stream 
in  the  interior  of  England,  should  number  its  popula- 
tion by  millions,  while  Liverpool,  with  its  great  com- 
mercial advantages,  cannot  go  beyond  thousands  in  the 
enumeration  of  its  inhabitants?  Why  is  it  that  Paris, 
with  few  natural  facilities  for  commerce,  should  be  so 
much  greater  in  population  and  wealth  than  any  of  the 
numerous  seaports  of  France  ?  Why  is  it  that  New 
York,  Philadelphia,  Baltimore  and  Boston,  situated 
within  a  few  hundred  miles  of  each  other,  should  be  the 
only  great  cities  of  our  Atlantic  seaboard  ?  Time  and 
again  it  has  been  predicted  that  the  numerous  railroads 


PORTLAND,  OREGON.  139 

running  from  all  parts  of  the  West  to  seaports  north  and 
south  of  New  York,  would  retard  the  growth  of  that 
city,  but  these  predictions  do  not  seem  to  be  verified. 

Taking  the  history  of  cities  together,  many  of  them 
seem  to  be  favored  and  fostered  by  an  auspicious  des- 
tiny. Municipal  fortunes  in  many  respects  are  not  dis- 
similar to  the  fortunes  of  an  individual.  Some  men 
will  struggle  and  toil  for  wealth  or  power  with  apparent 
wisdom  and  energy,  and  utterly  fail,  while  the  less 
demonstrative  efforts  of  others  are  crowned  with  abund- 
ant success.  Generally,  these  different  results  are 
ascribed  to  what  is  called  good  or  bad  luck  ;  but  this  is 
only  saying  that  the  facts  are  not  explainable  upon 
logical  principles. 

Our  history  as  a  country  abounds  in  instances  where 
places  with  navigable  waters  and  other  natural  advan- 
tages have  tried  in  vain  to  swell  themselves  into  metro- 
politan proportions  by  a  great  show  of  energy,  while 
other  places  less  favored  by  Nature  and  with  less  show 
have  advanced  to  the  pinnacle  of  power  and  influence. 
Our  city  has  been  criticised  for  its  conservative  tenden- 
cies and  alleged  lack  of  enterprise  ;  but  these  criticisms 
are  more  or  less  superficial,  and  do  not  take  into 
account  the  advantages  of  a  steady  and  healthful 
growth  as  compared  with  spasmodic  and  reactionary 
efforts  to  outstrip  competition.  Western  cities,  as  a 
general  rule,  are  not  satisfied  with  a  development  corre- 
sponding to  the  legitimate  influence  of  trade  and  com- 
merce, but  are  very  much  disposed  to  resort  to  artificial 
stimulants,  which,  like  the  youthful  dissipation  of  an 
individual,  bring  on  a  premature  and  decrepit  old  age. 
There  is  a  fever  in  the  body  politic.  Incorporated  com- 
munities, conceiving  themselves  to  be  rivals,  rush  madly 


140        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

into  schemes  of  self-aggrandizement,  blind  to  everything 
but  temporary  success.  False  and  exaggerated  reports 
are  put  in  circulation,  and  populations  are  increased  by 
deception  and  fraud.  Pauperism  and  crime  are  the  legi- 
timate fruits  of  this  policy.  Municipal  debts  are  piled  up 
till  the  consequent  taxation  becomes  a  blight  to  individ- 
ual enterprise.  The  reckless  and  extravagant  expendi- 
ture of  money  by  municipal  governments  is  one  of  the 
great  and  growing  evils  of  this  age.  There  is  need  of 
truth,  economy  and  deliberation  in  the  management  of 
city  affairs. 

Since,  I  came  to  Portland,  about  forty  years  ago,  its 
constantly  impending  downfall  has  been  the  point  of 
many  plausible  arguments.  We  have  been  told  that  it 
is  too  far  inland,  that  the  Columbia  and  Willamette 
Rivers  were  not  deep  enough  to  float  large  ships  to  its 
port,  or  that  it  was  a  decree  of  Nature  that  the  great  city 
of  Oregon  should  be  at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia. 
When  the  Northern  Pacific  Railroad  was  constructed  to 
Puget  Sound,  it  was  said  that  the  decadence  of  Portland 
would  surely  follow  ;  and  finally,  it  was  argued  that  the 
Oregon  &  California  Railroad,  when  completed,  would 
draw  away  the  business  of  Oregon  from  Portland  to  San 
Francisco.  All  these  arguments  appeared  reasonable 
enough  when  made,  but  they  have  been  answered  and 
disproved  by  what  looks  like  an  edict  of  destiny.  None 
of  these  predicted  calamities  caused  any  particular 
excitement  here  ;  but  Portland,  with  a  step  as  steady  as 
the  current  of  the  river  flowing  at  its  feet,  moved  for- 
ward to  its  present  acknowledged  supremacy.  There  is 
no  longer  any  question  as  to  the  position  of  this  city. 
The  prophets  of  evil  have  turned  to  be  prophets  of 
good.  Great  ships  navigate  the  rivers  whose  waters  were 


PORTLAND,  OREGON. 

to  cripple  our  commerce,  and  cars  that  were  to  carry 
away  our  business  are  bringing  their  freight  and  passen- 
gers to  our  doors.  The  currents  of  trade  have  set  in 
from  all  directions  to  this  city,  and  it  is  beyond  the 
power  of  any  other  or  rival  localities  to  divert  them  to 
other  channels.  According  to  the  laws  of  the  commer- 
cial world,  business  gravitates  to  the  money  centers  of  a 
country.  One  dollar  may  have  little  influence  over 
another,  but  millions  have  a  strong  affinity  for  other 
millions.  Little  streams  trickle  down  the  mountains  or 
through  the  meadows,  and  lose  themselves  in  unobserved 
places  ;  but  the  rivers  pour  their  waters  into  the  great 
reservoir  of  the  ocean,  from  which  the  clouds  again 
supply  the  fountains  :  and  so  the  money  centers  draw 
to  themselves  and  send  forth  the  financial  circulation  of 
the  country.  I  need  hardly  say  what  everybody  knows, 
that  Portland  is  the  money  center  of  the  Pacific  North- 
west, and  occupies  in  this  respect  the  same  relation  to 
that  region  that  San  Francisco  does  to  California,  Chi- 
cago to  the  Mississippi  valley,  and  New  York  to  the 
Atlantic  States. 

Forty-five  years  ago,  not  far  from  where  we  now 
stand,  a  woodman  with  his  axe  struck  a  blow  whose 
echoes  will  resound  "  to  the  last  syllable  of  recorded 
time."  Lapse  of  years  have  almost  effaced  from  the 
memories  of  men  the  log  house  in  which  our  city  was 
born.  There  was  no  feasting  or  drinking  upon  that 
occasion.  Over  the  roof  of  that  humble  abode  the  tall 
fir-trees  waved  their  green  plumes,  and  near  its  threshold, 
undisturbed  by  keel  or  craft,  glided  the  waters  of  the 
river.  All  the  silence  of  the  deep  woods  brooded 
over  the  place,  and  Nature  seemed  averse  to  any  disturb- 
ance of  her  "ancient,  solitary  reign."  Standing  like 


142        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

an  army  with  serried  ranks  from  the  banks  of  the  river 
to  the  tops  of  the  hills  behind  us,  the  mighty  forest 
grappled  the  earth  with  its  huge  roots,  and  covered  the 
heavens  with  its  dark  and  dismal  foliage.  To  build  a 
city  under  these  circumstances  was  like  a  battle  with 
giants  ;  but  destiny  waved  her  magic  wand  over  the 
scene,  and  the  wilderness  gloomily  submitted  to  its 
fate.  On  or  near  the  site  of  the  First  National  Bank,  a 
log  store  was  erected  in  1849  ;  and  then  and  there  was 
inaugurated  a  traffic  whose  transactions  have  reached 
the  borders  of  the  civilized  world.  Not  far  from  the 
same  time,  the  first  vessel  to  discharge  its  cargo  here 
fastened  its  shore  lines  to  a  friendly  stump,  and  then 
and  there  commenced  a  commerce  whose  white  wings 
have  fluttered  in  the  breezes  of  every  ocean.  Thence- 
forward the  forest  gradually  receded  from  the  river  before 
the  advance  of  improvement  ;  log  cabins  gave  place  to 
frame  buildings,  frame  buildings  to  brick,  and  so  the 
little  hamlet  slowly  changed  its  simple  ways  into  the 
customs  and  conventionalities  of  city  life.  Several 
localities,  some  on  the  Willamette  and  some  on  the 
Columbia,  started  out  as  competitors  of  Portland  ;  but 
they  soon  fell  out  of  the  race,  and  nothing  but  the 
industry  of  the  historian  has  rescued  the  names  of  some 
of  them  from  absolute  oblivion.  One,  and  not  an  unim- 
portant factor,  in  the  successful  start  of  Portland,  was  the 
liberal  spirit  of  its  founders.  Many  embryo  cities  with 
good  natural  prospects  have  been  crushed  out  of  exist- 
ence at  the  beginning  by  the  greed  of  their  proprietors 
in  demanding  exorbitant  prices  for  property  ;  but  the 
projectors  of  Portland  were  wiser,  and  by  a  large-hearted 
policy,  in  this  respect,  "  builded  better  than  they 
knew." 


PORTLAND,  OREGON.  143 

When  I  came  to  Oregon,  the  little  steamer  Columbia 
made  its  monthly  trips  between  San  Francisco  and  Port- 
land, and  sometimes  the  moon  twice  filled  her  horn 
between  the  times  of  our  receiving  intelligence  from  the 
Eastern  states.  Water  communications  gradually  mul- 
tiplied as  the  population  and  business  increased,  but 
soon  there  grew  up  among  the  people  an  irrepressible 
desire  for  railroad  connection  with  other  parts  of  the 
country,  and  to  that  end  work  was  commenced  in  1868  • 
but  delays  intervened,  and  it  is  not  yet  ten  years  since 
the  first  car  from  the  other  side  of  the  Rocky  Mount- 
ains came  to  this  city. 

Two  score  and  five  years  ago,  the  browsing  deer  upon 
Portland  Heights  eyed  with  curiosity  and  composure  the 
smoke  as  it  curled  up  from  the  pioneer's  cabin  ;  but  now 
the  delighted  tourist  stands  there  to  see  a  city  extending 
six  miles  in  one  direction  and  four  miles  in  the  other, 
with  75,000  people  living  within  its  borders,  — a  city 
within  whose  bounds  four  transcontinental  railroads 
practically  terminate,  —  whose  annual  export  amounts 
to  more  than  twelve  millions  of  dollars,  — whose  job- 
bing business  amounts  to  more  than  one  hundred  and 
thirty  millions  per  annum,  —  whose  fiscal  affairs  are 
managed  by  twenty  banks,  with  more  than  $10,000,000 
of  capital,  — whose  streets  are  occupied  with  more  than 
twenty  miles  of  electric  and  cable  railways, — whose 
churches,  school-houses  and  private  dwellings  excite 
surprise  and  admiration, — and  whose  business  houses, 
with  their  massive  walls  and  lofty  towers,  testify  to  the 
solidity  and  wealth  of  a  great  and  growing  city.  Our 
present  surroundings  are  full  of  great  promises.  "All 
roads  lead  to  Rome,"  was  an  old  saying  ;  and  so  it  may 
be  said  of  the  North  Pacific  country,  that  all  roads  lead 


144        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

to  Portland.  Imagination  is  too  feeble  to  estimate  the 
riches  that  will  flow  to  our  wharves  and  depots  when  the 
magnificent  valleys  south  of  us  are  filled  with  people  and 
cultivated  to  their  full  capacity.  When  the  Snake  and 
Columbia  rivers  are  opened  to  continuous  navigation 
from  Idaho  and  Eastern  Washington  to  Portland,  as 
they  surely  will  be,  the  agricultural  productions  and 
mineral  wealth  of  an  empire  in  extent  will  be  poured 
into  the  channels  of  our  business.  Our  commerce  will 
be  incalculably  increased  when  quick  and  cheap  trans- 
portation by  water  between  Europe  and  the  Atlantic 
States  and  the  Pacific  Coast  is  established  by  the  Nicara- 
gua Canal,  and  the  amenities  of  intercourse  with  our 
Asiatic  neighbors  are  broadened,  as  they  undoubtedly 
will  be. 

Portland  is  the  half-way  house  between  those  countries 
in  which,  when  it  is  high  noon  in  one,  it  is  midnight  in 
the  other.  Here  is  where  the  civilizations  of  the  old 
world  and  the  new  meet  face  to  face.  Here  is  where 
the  Caucasian  and  the  Mongolian  confront  each  other, 
and  here  is  where  Christianity  and  Paganism  will  dispute 
for  the  ascendency.  Great  populations,  great  commer- 
cial dealings  and  great  wealth  must  attend  these  condi- 
tions. I  am  moved  to  say,  however,  that  in  all  this 
there  is  not  only  glory,  but  danger.  The  spectres  of 
dead  cities  are  flitting  across  bright  visions.  History 
tells  us  over  and  over  again  that  luxury,  debauchery  and 
vice,  the  too  frequent  concomitants  of  great  wealth,  will 
destroy  any  city,  though  it  be  made  of  marble  and  iron, 
and  filled  with  all  the  splendor  and  power  of  untold 
riches.  The  strength  of  a  city  is  in  the  virtues  of  its 
inhabitants,  and  its  weakness  in  their  vices.  "Except 
God  keep  the  city,  the  watchman  waketh  in  vain." 


PORTLAND,  OREGON.  145 

Among  the  other  useful  institutions  developed  by  the 
growth  of  Portland,  is  the  Chamber  of  Commerce.  Sev- 
enteen years  ago,  some  gentlemen  distinguished  for 
their  energy  and  public  spirit  organized  a  board  of 
trade  ;  but  this  was  an  unincorporated  association,  and 
lacked  those  legal  faculties  and  powers  essential  to  its  suc- 
cessful operation.  Early  last  year,  the  board  of  trade  was 
incorporated,  and  its  name  changed  to  that  of  the  Cham- 
ber of  Commerce.  Five  hundred  and  fifty  of  the  repre- 
sentative men  of  this  city  now  constitute  the  member- 
ship of  this  corporation,  the  chief  business  of  which  is  to 
advance  the  commercial,  mercantile,  manufacturing  and 
industrial  interests  of  Portland  and  the  state  of  Oregon. 
Legislation  affecting  the  welfare  of  our  city,  questions 
relative  to  navigation  and  transportation  by  water  and 
by  land,  public  improvements,  and  all  the  interests  of 
trade  and  commerce,  are  made  the  subjects  of  its  care 
and  attention.  Practically,  the  Chamber  of  Commerce 
is  the  experience,  wisdom  and  wealth  of  Portland,  com- 
bined to  promote  the  general  prosperity.  We  are 
indebted  to  this  institution  and  its  predecessor  for  many 
things  of  advantage  in  the  city,  but  an  allusion  to  two 
of  these  must  suffice  for  this  occasion.  Chiefly  through 
the  influence  of  the  Chamber  of  Commerce,  an  act  was 
passed  by  the  late  legislative  assembly,  establishing  the 
Port  of  Portland,  which  act  provides  for  the  expenditure 
of  $500,000  for  the  creation  of  a  channel  twenty-five 
feet  deep  from  Portland  to  the  sea.  When  the  jetties  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  are  completed,  as  they  soon 
will  be,  and  the  deep  channel  provided  for  in  this  act  is 
made,  Portland  will  be  more  accessible  to  vessels  of  deep 
draft  than  any  other  place  in  the  United  States  at  as 
great  a  distance  from  the  ocean,  and  will  unite  all  the 


146       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

advantages  of  a  seaport  and  an  inland  city.  Sea-going 
vessels  go  to  Philadelphia  on  the  Delaware,  to  New 
Orleans  on  the  Mississippi,  to  Montreal  on  the  St.  Law- 
rence ;  and  they  will  come  to  Portland,  bringing  and 
seeking  freight  and  passengers,  no  matter  how  many 
railroads  parallel  the  river.  Another  thing  largely  due 
to  the  influence  of  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  is  the  act 
consolidating  Portland,  East  Portland  and  Albina,  into 
one  grand  city.  One  strong  government  is  better  and 
less  expensive  than  three  weak  ones  ;  and  the  less  local 
jealousy  there  is  among  those  whose  interests  are  iden- 
tical, the  better  for  all  concerned. 

When  I  survey  from  Portland  Heights  our  newly- 
formed  city  and  its  additions,  I  am  reminded  of  what  I 
have  read  about  Rome  upon  her  seven  hills,  with  the 
Tiber  rolling  between  ;  and  it  has  occurred  to  me  that 
possibly  the  high  lands  on  the  east  side  of  the  Willam- 
ette, and  the  hills  behind  us  on  the  west  side,  may 
become  as  famous  in  song  and  story  as  the  Palatine, 
Quirinal  and  Capitoline  hills  of  the  "Imperial  City." 
Ours  are  the  triumphs  of  peace,  and,  irrespective  of  war, 
Rome  had  no  advantages  over  us  in  country,  climate  or 
the  sources  of  wealth  and  power.  To  one  standing  on 
any  of  the  acclivities  around  Portland,  a  panoramic 
view  is  presented  which  for  variety  and  beauty  has  few, 
if  any,  equals  in  any  country.  North  and  south,  and 
far  away  to  the  eastward,  stretches  the  landscape,  diver- 
sified by  mountain,  hill,  plain,  forest  and  river,  and  so 
inlaid  with  the  works  of  the  architect  and  builder  as  to 
make  a  scene  worthy  of  the  pen  that  described  Arcadia, 
or  of  the  pencil  that  painted  the  Yosemite  Valley. 

To-day  we  are  laying  the  corner-stone  of  a  building 
which  is  to  be  another  monumental  proof  of  the  growth 


PORTLAND,  OREGON.  147 

and  prosperity  of  this  city.  It  will  be  a  witness  to  pos- 
terity of  the  public  spirit  and  architectural  skill  and 
taste  of  this  day.  It  is  to  be  an  immense  structure, 
100  by  200  feet  upon  the  ground,  eight  stories  high, 
with  a  tower  two  stories  higher  ;  is  to  be  constructed  of 
marble,  iron  and  brick,  so  as  to  be  as  completely  fire- 
proof as  practicable,  and  is  to  cost  $500,000.  Within 
its  solid  walls  will  be  conducted  deliberations  by  which, 
no  doubt,  millions  of  people  will  be  affected.  We  know 
not  what  is  before  us,  but  we  lay  this  foundation-stone 
in  faith  and  hope.  We  are  building  to-day,  not  only  for 
ourselves  and  our  children,  but  for  coming  genera- 
tions. They  are  interested  in  this  event.  They  are 
coming  forward  to  take  our  places  as  we  pass  on  to  the 
silent  land  ;  and  for  them,  as  well  as  for  ourselves,  I  do 
invoke  upon  this  building  the  blessings  of  Heaven,  and 
dedicate  it,  as  far  as  I  am  able,  to  the  twin  deities  of 
wisdom  and  justice.  Let  it  be  remembered  that  mater- 
ial prosperity  is  not  all  that  makes  a  city.  The  intelli- 
gence and  morality  of  the  people  are  the  true  and  endur- 
ing elements  of  greatness.  Educational  and  charitable 
institutions  are  twice  blessed.  They  bless  those  who 
build  them  up,  and  bless  those  who  enjoy  their  benefac- 
tions. To  make  judicious  provisions  for  the  poor  in  our 
large  cities,  is  one  of  the  difficult  problems  of  the  day. 
While  it  is  true,  as  said  by  one  of  old,  that  the  poor  we 
are  always  to  have  with  us,  it  is  also  true  that  much  of 
the  poverty  is  unnecessary,  and  much  of  it  might  be 
prevented. 

Intemperance  and  gambling  produce  a  large  share  of 
the  want  and  suffering  in  our  cities,  and  God  and 
humanity  appeal  to  all  good  citizens  to  do  what  they 
can  to  repress  these  vices.  Taken  as  individuals,  the 


148        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

men  who  compose  the  Chamber  of  Commerce  in  this 
city  have  more  influence  than  any  other  equal  number 
of  persons  in  the  state  ;  and  if  they  would  show  the 
same  energy  and  zeal  for  the  moral  advancement  of  our 
city  that  they  do  for  its  material  progress,  the  good 
name  of  Portland  would  be  worth  more  than  ornaments 
of  gold  and  chains  of  precious  stones.  Nothing,  in  my 
judgment,  will  conduce  more  to  the  prosperity  of  this 
city  than  to  have  it  known  that  Portland  is  the  most 
peaceful  and  law-abiding  city  on  the  Pacific  Coast.  We 
are  not  only  laying  the  corner-stone  of  a  new  building 
to-day,  but  celebrating  the  advent  of  a  new  year. 
Eighteen  hundred  and  ninety-one  has  gone,  with  its 
faded  flowers  and  fallen  leaves  ;  and  eighteen  hundred 
and  ninety-two  has  come,  with  its  budding  hopes  and 
bright  expectations.  This  is  an  auspicious  and  eventful 
day.  Looking  backward  with  gratitude  and  forward 
with  hope,  we  bid  an  affectionate  farewell  to  the  old  and 
a  hearty  welcome  to  the  new. 


WILLIAM  I.,  EMPEROR  OF  GERMANY.         149 


WILLIAM    I.,    EMPEROR   OF   GERMANY. 


ADDRESS    UPON    HIS    DEATH,     DELIVERED    AT    PORTLAND,    OREGON. 
MARCH  16,  1888. 


Ladies  and  Gentlemen  :  I  was  requested  yesterday 
to  be  present,  and  add  a  few  words  in  the  English  lan- 
guage to  the  memorial  exercises  of  this  occasion.  We 
are  assembled  to  celebrate  the  funeral  obsequies  of  Wil- 
liam I.,  Emperor  of  Germany,  who,  on  the  9th  day 
of  this  month,  came  down  to  his  grave,  full  of  years 
and  full  of  honors.  Few  men  within  the  last  half  cen- 
tury have  occupied  a  more  conspicuous  place  in  the  eyes 
of  the  world  than  the  man  whose  death  has  brought  us 
together  this  evening.  Whatever  we  may  think  of  the 
form  or  system  of  the  German  government,  its  adminis- 
tration by  the  late  emperor  confessedly  has  commanded 
the  attention  and  admiration  of  the  civilized  world. 

When  William  I.  ascended  the  throne  of  his  fathers, 
he  found  his  power  circumscribed  to  one  of  the  states  of 
divided  and  distracted  Germany.  His  purpose  from  the 
beginning  was  to  create  a  confederation  of  the  German 
states  with  Prussia  at  its  head,  and  the  great  Bismarck 
was  accepted  as  his  chief  minister  for  the  development 
of  this  object.  Austria  antagonized  Prussia  upon  this 
question,  and  war  ensued  between  the  two  countries  ; 
but  the  crushing  defeat  of  Austria  in  the  great  battle  of 
Koniggratz,  in  1806,  gave  permanent  ascendency  to  the 
cause  of  German  unity.  Consequent  upon  this  victory 
of  King  William,  a  North  German  confederacy  was 
rapidly  formed,  though  the  states  of  South  Germany 
were  not  prepared  at  that  time  to  accept  the  sovereignty 


150       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

of  the  Prussian  King  ;  but  when  France  declared  war 
against  Prussia  in  1870,  the  North  and  South  of  Ger- 
many made  common  cause,  and  mingled  their  blood 
together  in  the  great  and  decisive  battles  of  that  war. 
On  the  18th  of  January,  1871,  the  victorious  William, 
in  the  capital  of  conquered  France,  was  proclaimed 
emperor,  and  the  states  that  followed  him  to  victory 
were  consolidated  into  a  great  German  empire.  Noth- 
ing greater  than  this  has  been  accomplished  in  modern 
statesmanship,  whether  we  consider  the  brilliant  effec- 
tiveness of  the  means  employed,  or  the  beneficial  results 
to  follow.  Monuments  of  marble  and  brass  will  be 
raised  to  the  memory  of  the  dead  monarch  by  his  proud 
and  grateful  countrymen  ;  but  the  greatest  of  all  his 
monuments  will  be  the  united  hearts  and  hands  of 
undivided  Germany. 

Inspired  by  Bismarck,  William,  as  king  or  emperor, 
adhered  with  inflexible  tenacity  to  the  ancient  and 
hereditary  prerogatives  of  his  crown  ;  but  it  is  not 
improper  to  say  that  justice  and  mercy  were  the 
habitations  of  his  throne.  He  was  a  soldier  almost  from 
his  cradle  to  the  grave,  but  his  fighting,  from  Waterloo 
to  the  siege  of  Paris,  was  for  the  protection  and  peace  of 
his  country.  He  controlled,  with  absolute  authority, 
the  horrible  machinery  of  war,  and  was  familiar  with 
scenes  of  blood  and  carnage  upon  the  battle-field  ;  but 
no  act  of  personal  cruelty,  like  those  which  disgraced 
the  first  Napoleon,  stains  the  escutcheon  of  his  military 
fame.  Surrounded  by  all  the  temptations  and  trappings 
of  imperial  power,  he  was  distinguished  for  the  simplic- 
ity of  his  habits,  and  the  purity  of  his  private  life. 
Speaking  only  from  what  I  know  of  current  history,  he 
was  an  affectionate  husband  and  father,  recognizing  his 


WILLIAM  I.,  EMPEROR  OF  GERMANY.        151 

duty  to  his  family,  and  his  obligations  for  the  goodness 
and  mercy  of  God.  Monarchs  are  to  be  judged,  like 
other  men,  according  to  the  sphere  of  life  to  which  they 
are  allotted.  No  one  is  better  or  worse  for  the  inheri- 
tance to  which  he  is  born  ;  but  the  greater  the  tempta- 
tions to  do  wrong,  the  greater  the  merit  in  doing  right. 
Princes  and  potentates  are  generally  surrounded  by 
sycophants  and  the  seductions  of  great  riches  and 
power,  and  too  often  under  these  circumstances  prema- 
turely end  an  inglorious  life  ;  but  the  moral  strength  of 
the  dead  emperor  is  demonstrated  by  the  fact  that  four- 
score years  and  ten  of  a  sound  mind  in  a  sound  body 
crowned  the  close  of  an  active  and  illustrious  life. 
Emperor  William  was  a  man  of  majestic  mien  and 
splendid  physical  proportions. 

"  A  combination  and  a  form  indeed, 
Where  every  god  did  seem  to  set  his  seal, 
To  give  the  world  assurance  of  a  man." 

Our  opinion  of  the  emperor,  as  a  ruler  and  a  man, 
ought  to  be  greatly  influenced  by  the  estimate  in  which 
he  was  held  by  his  subjects.  Much  diversity  of  opinion 
exists  among  the  people  of  Germany  as  to  the  princi- 
ples of  government  and  the  right  of  imperial  sway  ; 
but  popular  affection  seems  to  have  clustered  around 
this  departed  sovereign,  and  all  classes  of  his  people 
bow  their  uncovered  heads  in  sorrow  at  his  grave.  No 
matter  under  what  foreign  flag  a  native-born  German 
may  be,  or  however  much  he  may  be  opposed  to  a  mon- 
archical form  of  government,  the  tender  chords  of  his 
memory  and  affection  are  touched  with  a  new  thrill  by 
the  death  of  one  who  has  done  so  much  for  the  great- 
ness and  glory  of  his  Fatherland.  To  be  added  to  the 
solemnities  of  this  occasion  is  the  sympathy  we  feel 


152       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

for  the  son  and  successor  of  the  dead  emperor,  whose 
critical  condition  of  health  forebodes  another  early 
vacancy  in  the  imperial  house  of  Germany.  He  will 
live,  however,  if  the  wishes  and  prayers  of  an  affection- 
ate people  can  save  him. 

I  must  say,  as  an  American  citizen,  that  I  am 
opposed  to  the  hereditary  privileges  and  class  distinc- 
tions of  the  German  government  ;  but  that  is  no 
reason  why  I  should  not  award  a  just  meed  of  praise 
to  him  who  has  been  at  the  head  of  that  govern- 
ment. Whatever  his  views  were  as  to  republics,  he 
never  was  unfriendly  to  the  United  States.  While  other 
European  countries  interfered  to  promote  the  dissolution 
of  the  American  Union  in  our  war  of  the  rebellion,  we 
had  no  cause  to  complain  of  the  attitude  or  action  of 
Germany  in  that  day  of  our  distress.  When  the  British 
and  American  High  Joint  Commission  was  formed  to 
make  the  treaty  of  Washington,  the  long-pending  con- 
troversy as  to  our  northwestern  boundary  was  one  of 
the  questions  to  be  adjusted  by  that  Commission.  Both 
countries,  through  a  long  diplomatic  correspondence, 
were  thoroughly  committed  to  their  respective  views. 
Great  Britain  claimed  that  the  true  boundary  was  the 
Rosario  Strait,  and  the  United  States  claimed  that  it  was 
the  Canal  de  Haro.  I  happened  to  be  upon  that  Commis- 
sion, and,  on  account  of  my  residence  in  Oregon,  was 
supposed  to  peculiarly  represent  the  United  States  upon 
that  question.  I  cannot  state  what  took  place  in  the 
sessions  of  the  Commission,  which  were  to  be  kept 
secret ;  but  the  result  was  that  the  question  was  submit- 
ted to  the  Emperor  of  Germany,  who,  after  a  patient 
and  careful  examination  of  the  subject,  decided  in  favor 
of  the  United  States.  Bv  this  decision  the  United 


WILLIAM  I.,  EMPEROR  OF  GERMANY.        153 

States  came  into  the  undisputed  possession  of  the  Island 
of  San  Juan  and  adjacent  islands,  making  in  all  about 
two  hundred  square  miles  of  territory.  I  refer  to  this, 
not  doubting  the  correctness  of  the  decision,  but  to 
show  that  Emperor  William  had  the  courage  of  his  con- 
victions, and  did  not  hesitate  to  do  justice  between  a 
republic  and  a  European  government,  kindred  to  his  own. 
How  much  more  sensible  and  satisfactory-  an  arbitration 
like  this  for  the  settlement  of  international  disputes  than 
an  appeal  to  the  barbarities  and  uncertainties  of  war. 
OUT  minds  are  overwhelmed  when  we  attempt  to 
inlj'  of.  the  great  changes  that  have  occurred  in  the 
world's. history,  between  the  birth  and  death  of  the  late 
German  Emperor.  Napoleon  Bonaparte  had  not  com- 
menced his  extraordinary  career  when  William  was  born 
in  1797,  and  he  lived  to  see  the  rise  and  fall  of  the 
whole  Napoleonic  dynasty.  When  he  was  born,  John 
Adams  was  President  of  the  United  States,  and  twenty 
different  men  have  filled  that  office  since  that  time,  all 
of  whom,  with  two  exceptions,  are  now  dead.  George 
III.  was  King  of  England  ;  and  Mexico  and  the  South 
American  republics  were  under  the  dominion  of  Spain. 
All  the  population  of  the  United  States  did  not  exceed 
4,000,000  people,  and  they  were  confined  to  the  thirteen 
original  colonies.  Steam  transportation  by  land  or  water 
was  unknown,  and  the  use  of  electric  wires  for  the  trans- 
mission of  intelligence  was  among  the  far-off  discoveries 
of  science.  Destined  in  early  life  to  see  the  victorious 
eagles  of  France  wave  over  his  native  land,  broken  and 
bleeding  at  the  feet  of  Napoleon,  he  lived  to  see,  at  the 
end  of  two  wars,  the  banners  of  Germany  wave  in  tri- 
umph over  the  capital  of  France,  and  his  once  clown-trod- 
den country  raised  to  one  of  the  great  empires  of  the  earth. 


154        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

Political  greatness  was  not  the  only  distinction  ac- 
quired by  Germany  during  the  life  of  the  late  emperor. 
Goethe,  Schiller,  Kant,  Fichte  and  Von  Humboldt  were 
his  contemporaries  ;  and  their  poetical,  philosophical  and 
historical  works  are  as  brilliant  in  the  world  of  letters 
as  the  glories  of  the  German  empire  are  in  the  world 
of  arms.  Intellectually,  the  emperor  was  more  or  less 
eclipsed  by  the  great  abilities  of  Bismarck.  I  once 
asked  the  venerable  George  Bancroft,  who  has  been 
intimate  with  the  scholars  and  statesmen  of  Europe 
and  America  for  the  last  fifty  years,  whom  he  con- 
sidered the  greatest  man  among  his  acquaintances  ;  and 
he  promptly  answered  that  Bismarck  was  incompar- 
ably the  greatest  man  he  ever  knew.  Much  credit, 
however,  is  due  the  late  emperor  for  good  judg- 
ment in  surrounding  himself  with  wise  counsellors. 
Napoleon  was  largely  indebted  for  his  success  to  his 
judicious  selection  of  his  lieutenants  ;  and  the  sovereign 
or  ruler  is  justly  distinguished  for  wisdom  who  chooses 
strong  and  sturdy  men,  instead  of  feeble  flatterers,  to  be 
his  confidential  friends  and  advisers. 

All  distinctions  perish  before  an  open  grave  ;  and  the 
ties  of  nature,  sundered  by  death,  bleed  alike  in  the 
bosom  of  the  peasant  and  the  king.  Surrounded  by  all 
her  palatial  grandeur,  the  widow  of  the  dead  emperor 
suffers  in  her  sorrow  like  one  whose  humble  cottage 
has  been  desolated  by  the  hand  of  death.  Friendship 
and  sympathy  will  pour  their  well-intended  words 
of  condolence  into  her  ears,  but  the)7  will  fall  unheeded 
into  the  silence  of  a  voice  that  is  forever  still.  All  the 
pomp  and  pageantry  of  the  imperial  funeral  now  going 
on  in  the  capital  of  Germany,  though  they  show  the 


WILLIAM  I.,  EMPEROR  OF  GERMANY.        155 

expression  of  a  loyal  and  grateful  people,  show,  too, 
in  a  significant  form,  "what  shadows  we  are,  and  what 
shadows  we  pursue." 

"  Ashes  to  ashes,  dust  to  dust ; 
He  is  gone  who  seemed  so  great. — 
Gone ;    but  nothing  can  bereave  him 
Of  the  force  he  made  his  own 
Being  here,  and  we  believe  him 
Something  far  advanced  in  state, 
And  that  he  wears  a  truer  crown 
Than  any  wreath  that  man  can  weave  him. 
But  speak  no  more  of    his  renown, 
Lay  your  earthly  fancies  down, 
And  in  the  vast  cathedral  leave  him. 
God  accept  him,  Christ  receive  him." 


156       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 


THE    STUDY    AND    PRACTICE    OF    MEDICINE. 


ADDRESS    TO    THE    GRADUATING    CLASS  OF   THE    MEDICAL,    DEPART- 
MENT   OF    THE    WILLAMETTE   UNIVERSITY,    PORTLAND, 
OREGON,    DELIVERED    APRIL    16,   1885. 


' '  Every  girl, ' '  says  Macaulay,  ' '  who  has  read  Mrs. 
Mancal's  little  dialogues  on  political  economy,  could  teach 
Montague  or  Walpole  many  lessons  in  finance."  And 
further  on  he  says  :  "  Any  intelligent  man  may  now, 
by  resolutely  applying  himself  for  a  few  years  to  mathe- 
matics, learn  more  than  the  great  Newton  knew  after 
half  a  century  of  study  and  meditation."  These  words 
are  full  of  significance.  They  imply  that  truth  is  every- 
where and  in  everything,  and  that  to  detect  and  extri- 
cate this  truth  from  the  infinitude  of  error  by  which  it 
is  surrounded,  is  the  great  work  of  human  improve- 
ment. Every  generation,  by  discovery  or  experience, 
acquires  some  truth  not  known  to  its  predecessor,  which 
it  transmits  to  its  successor  ;  and  so,  from  generation  to 
generation,  the  stores  of  human  knowledge  are  increased. 
Whether  we  are  wiser  and  better  than  our  fathers  may 
be  a  debatable  question,  but  that  we  know  more  '  of  the 
laws  of  nature  and  the  truths  of  science  than  they  did, 
no  intelligent  person  will  deny  ;  and  that  they  had  more 
of  this  sort  of  knowledge  than  their  progenitors  is  quite 
as  incontestable.  There  is  a  well-founded  opinion  that 
mankind  grows  wiser,  better  and  happier  by  this 
increase  of  knowledge.  Statistics,  it  is  said,  will  show 
that  the  people  of  the  civilized  world,  taken  in  the 
aggregate,  are  less  savage  in  their  dispositions,  more 
liberal  and  tolerant  in  their  views,  are  better  housed  and 


THE  STUDY  AND  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICINE.     157 

fed  and  clad,  and  are  more  healthful  and  live  longer 
than  they  did  when  the  pilgrim  fathers  landed  upon  the 
shores  of  New  England.  Among  all  the  discoveries 
and  improvements  made  in  the  course  of  human  events, 
there  are  none  more  remarkable  or  beneficial  to  man- 
kind than  those  made  in  medical  science. 

^sculapius  was  the  mythological  god  of  the  art  of 
healing,  and  it  is  represented  that  the  sick  were  carried 
to  his  temples  to  be  cured  by  ablutions,  prayers  and 
sacrifices.  Indeed,  in  many  countries,  in  the  olden 
time,  medicine  was  a  mere  appendage  of  religion,  and 
a  minor  office  of  the  priesthood  was  to  heal  the  sick  by 
prayers,  incantations  and  other  mystical  rites  and  cere- 
monies ;  but  time  and  experience  gradually  dispelled 
these  delusions,  and  led  inquiry  to  more  reasonable  and 
practical  methods  of  treating  the  diseases  of  the  human 
system.  Hippocrates,  who  lived  before  the  Christian 
era,  and  who  is  called  the  father  of  medicine,  is  entitled 
to  the  credit  of  evolving  from  the  religious  mummeries 
of  his  day  the  doctrine  that  the  maladies  of  the  human 
family  and  their  treatment  were  subject  to  natural  laws, 
and  not  to  supernatural  agencies.  His  theory  was  that 
there  were  four  humors  in  the  human  body, —  blood, 
phlegm,  yellow  bile  and  black  bile,  —  and  that  an  undue 
predominance  of  one  of  these  was  the  proximate  cause  of 
sickness  ;  and  his  labor  and  skill  were  devoted  to  the 
support  of  this  theory  :  but  he  was  ignorant  of  the  dif- 
ference between  veins  and  arteries,  nerves,  tendons  and 
ligaments,  and  of  the  anatomical  structure  of  the  human 
system.  Galen,  another  great  light  in  the  medical 
world,  adopted  the  theory  that,  besides  the  solids  and 
fluids  which  it  contains,  the  human  body  was  animated 
by  three  kinds  of  spirits, —  the  vital  spirits,  the  natural 


158       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

spirits  and  the  animal  spirits  ;  and  at  a  still  later  period 
Borelli  propounded  the  dogma  that  the  human  body  was 
to  be  regulated  as  a  machine,  to  which  the  laws  of 
mechanics,  hydraulics  and  hydrostatics  were  to  be 
applied  in  the  treatment  of  its  ailments.  All  these 
theories,  and  others  too  numerous  to  mention,  have 
been  tried  in  the  crucible  of  experience,  and  from  the 
false  and  the  fanciful,  the  real  and  the  true  have  been 
eliminated ;  and  in  this  way  steady  and  useful  improve- 
ments have  been  made  in  medical  science. 

When  we  consider  the  discoveries  of  Galileo  and 
Newton,  we  are  surprised  that,  with  all  the  achievements 
in  art  and  science  of  antecedent  ages,  mankind  should 
have  remained  so  long  ignorant  of  the  revolutions  and 
laws  of  the  planetary  world  ;  but  it  is  none  the  less  sur- 
prising that  the  circulation  of  the  blood  should  have 
been  unknown  until  it  was  discovered  by  Harvey  in 
1628.  It  is  another  surprising  fact  that  the  true  theory 
of  respiration  was  not  known  until  after  the  circulation 
of  the  blood  was  discovered.  Less  than  one  hundred 
years  ago,  Jenner  made  the  great  discovery  that  vac- 
cination would  prevent  the  ravages  of  the  small-pox. 
Prior  to  that  time,  it  was  estimated  that  more  than 
400,000  of  the  people  of  Europe  were  carried  off  annu- 
ally by  this  dread  disease.  Within  the  last  century, 
brilliant  discoveries  have  been  made  in  chemistry  ; 
microscopy,  by  which  the  germs  of  disease  can  be 
detected  and  their  development  traced,  has  shed  a  new 
light  upon  the  medical  world  ;  comparative  anatomy  and 
physiology  have  furnished  new  and  more  perfect  methods 
of  investigation  ;  and  certainty  in  the  practice  of  medi- 
cine has  made  great  strides  into  the  regions  of  doubt, 
dogmatism  and  speculation.  All  these  things  show  that 


THE  STUDY  AND  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICINE.     159 

medicine  is  a  progressive  science  ;  that  study,  observa- 
tion and  experience  dissipate  error  and  develop  truth  ; 
and  that  the  physician  of  the  present  day  may,  if  he 
will,  know  more  of  his  business  than  the  most  distin- 
guished of  his  predecessors  in  the  profession. 

To  acquire  what  others  have  ascertained  and  published 
is  not  all  of  true  professional  ambition.  Apparently,  the 
field  of  exploration  and  discover)'  is  illimitable.  There 
are  depths  of  learning  not  yet  sounded,  and  problems  of 
deep  import  yet  unsolved.  Human  life  is  a  wonderful 
mystery,  and  many  of  the  ills  that  flesh  is  heir  to  still 
challenge  and  defy  the  highest  efforts  of  medical  skill. 
All  disease  is  due  to  a  disturbance  of,  or  a  departure 
from,  some  law  of  nature.  The  normal  condition  of 
animal  existence  is  perfect  health.  Sickness  is  not  for- 
tuitous or  accidental,  but,  like  all  other  phenomena,  is 
subject  to  the  jurisdiction  of  cause  and  effect.  Under- 
lying the  whole  system  of  medical  science  is  the  all-per- 
vading fact  that  every  breath  of  the  nostrils,  every  drop 
of  blood  in  the  veins,  every  flutter  of  the  nerves  and 
every  throb  of  pain,  is  governed  by  a  law  as  immutable 
as  the  law  of  gravitation.  All  argumentation  leading  to 
correct  conclusions  in  medicine  must  proceed  from  this 
standpoint.  To  detect  these  laws,  which  are  marvelous 
in  number  and  subtlety,  and  to  understand  their  operation 
and  effect,  is  the  achievement  to  which  medical  learning 
leads  its  votaries. 

Medical  science  is  greatly  indebted  for  its  recent 
triumphs  to  the  substitution  of  the  inductive  for  the 
deductive  or  Aristotelian  mode  of  reasoning,  which 
obtained  in  former  times  ;  or,  in  other  words,  the 
unknown  is  now  deduced  from  the  known,  not  by 
arguing  from  the  general  to  the  particular,  but  from 


160       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

the  particular  to  the  general.  Assuming  (air  other 
things  being  equal )  that  like  causes  produce  like  effects, 
the  law  of  any  phenomena  in  pathology  is  to  be  deter- 
mined by  analyzing  and  reducing  those  phenomena  to 
their  elemental  factors,  and  then,  by  careful  and  exhaus- 
tive observation,  attesting  the  presence  or  absence  of 
all  or  some  of  these  factors  whenever  the  like  pheno- 
mena appear ;  and  thus  it  may  be  found  that  the  pres- 
ence of  one  or  more  of  these  factors  always  accompanies, 
creates  or  controls  the  phenomena.  Mathematical  exacti- 
tude may  not  be  attainable  in  this  way,  and  sometimes 
there  may  be  influences  at  work  which  the  most  critical 
examination  cannot  detect ;  but  by  such  means  the  true 
is  sifted  out  from  the  false,  the  cause  from  its  concomit- 
ants, and  mere  speculation  thereon  is  reduced  to  scien- 
tific knowledge. 

Materia  medica  is  a  boundless  field,  prospected  only 
to  a  limited  extent.  When  the  cause  and  nature  of  a 
disease  are  known,  the  next  thing  is  to  apply  a  remedy. 
Logically,  it  would  seem  that  if  the  cause  can  be  and  is 
removed,  a  cure  would  be  effected  ;  and  to  that  end  it  is 
generally  necessary  to  introduce  into  the  disordered  sys- 
tem some  foreign  substance,  either  to  eradicate  the  cause 
or  neutralize  and  destroy  its  effects.  This  is  the  domain 
of  absolute  empiricism.  No  one,  otherwise  than  by  actual 
experiment,  can  tell  whether  a  drug,  a  plant  or  a  fluid 
will  extirpate  a  disease.  Possibly,  there  may  be  among 
the  productions  of  nature  remedies  for  all  abnormal 
interruptions  of  health  ;  but  all  we  know  now  is,  that 
some  maladies  may  be  cured  and  others  mitigated  by 
the  use  of  vegetable  and  mineral  substances.  Perhaps 
it  may  be  allowable  to  suggest  that  physicians  are 
inclined  to  reject  information  as  to  these  matters  not 


THE  STUDY  AND  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICINE.     161 

coming  from  professional  sources.  Peruvian  bark,  in 
its  various  forms,  is  extensively  and  successfully  used, 
and  has  a  recognized  place  in  materia  medica ;  but  the 
knowledge  of  its  medicinal  virtues  was  derived  from  the 
fact  that  it  was  eaten  by  the  untutored  natives  of  the 
country  where  it  grows,  to  counteract  the  malarial 
influences  of  the  climate  in  which  they  live.  Doubtless 
there  are  many  traditions  and  experiments  among  the 
unlearned  that  may  be  appropriated  to  useful  purposes 
by  the  learned.  "Prove  all  things;  hold  fast  that 
which  is  good," — seems  to  be  the  correct  rule  in  the 
field  of  empiricism. 

No  profession  affords  a  wider  scope  or  higher  consider- 
ations for  industry,  learning  and  great  abilities  than  the 
medical  profession  ;  and  there  is  none  in  which  there  is 
more  of  ignorance  and  incompetency.  Many  unquali- 
fied persons  find  their  way  into  the  legal  and  clerical 
professions  ;  but  they  soon  sink  to  a  level  corresponding 
to  their  lack  of  learning  and  abilities,  because  the  duties 
of  these  professions  are  of  such  a  public  nature  that 
people  can  soon  distinguish  between  those  who  are  fit 
and  those  who  are  unfit  for  their  vocations.  In  these 
professions,  and  especially  in  the  legal  profession,  public 
controversy  brings  into  view  the  incompetency  of  the 
feeble-minded  or  half-educated  contestant.  All  classes 
and  ages  of  the  living  are  liable  to  die  ;  and  there- 
fore, when  death  comes,  it  is  difficult,  if  not  impossible, 
to  tell  whether  it  is  inevitable,  or  is  due  to  the  incapac- 
ity of  the  medical  attendants,  and  the  public  have  poor 
opportunities  to  form  a  correct  judgment  upon  the  sub- 
ject. When  disease  attacks  the  human  system,  ordi- 
narily it  encounters  a  natural  tendency  to  resist  and 
overcome  the  attack,  and  not  unfrequently  this  tendency 


162        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

prevails,  irrespective  of  extraneous  aid  ;  and  in  such  a 
case  it  is  difficult  to  tell  whether  the  recovery  is  due  to 
the  skill  of  the  doctor  or  the  recuperative  energies  of 
his  patient.  My  opinion  is,  that  all  the  learned  profes- 
sions are  too  easy  of  access  by  persons  without  the 
requisite  qualifications  ;  and  this  is  emphatically  so  as  to 
the  medical  profession.  The  responsibilities  of  lawyers 
relate  chiefly  to  property  ;  clergymen  attend  to  the 
morals  of  the  people  ;  but  health  and  life  are  in  the 
hands  of  the  physician.  With  unbounded  opportunities 
for  doing  good,  the  physician  has  infinitely  greater 
opportunities  for  doing  evil  than  any  other  professional 
man.  Thousands  are  probably  destroyed  every  year  by 
persons  pretending  to  practice  medicine,  and  thousands 
of  others  are  made  wretched  for  life  by  the  reckless 
experiments  of  those  impostors.  Society  ought  to  be 
protected  from  this  evil  by  the  strong  arm  of  the  crimi- 
nal law.  No  man  should  be  allowed  to  hold  himself 
out  to  the  community  as  a  physician,  unless  he  can  fur- 
nish proof  that  he  has  been  thoroughly  educated  and 
prepared  for  his  profession.  To  make  a  correct  diagnosis 
of  a  disease  is  the  primary  and  chief  necessity  for  its 
proper  treatment  ;  and  it  is  a  plain  dictate  of  common 
sense  that  no  one  can  do  this,  especially  in  complex  and 
intricate  cases,  who  has  not  studied  and  does  not 
understand  the  organs  of  the  human  body,  their  rela- 
tions to  each  other,  and  their  respective  functions.  All 
men  cannot  be  great  physicians,  any  more  than  all  men 
can  be  great  poets  or  philosophers  ;  but,  as  a  general 
rule,  the  most  scientific  will  be  the  most  skillful  and 
successful  physician.  Truth,  like  an  ever-moving 
drill,  is  constantly  undermining  all  kinds  of  heresy, 
traditions  and  superstitions,  and  it  is  astonishing  to 


THE  STUDY  AND  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICINE.    163 

consider  how  many  medical  theories,  systems  and  schools 
have  been  exploded  under  the  blazing  rays  of  science. 

Surgery  was  at  one  time  an  ignoble  pursuit,  and  was 
carried  on  by  barbers  as  an  incident  to  their  business  ; 
but  it  has  risen  by  scientific  investigation  to  be  one  of 
the  most  learned  and  honorable  of  the  professions. 
Few  discoveries  of  modern  times  are  more  wonderful, 
and  certainly  none  more  beneficial,  than  the  use  of  anaes- 
thetics in  surgical  operations.  No  conception  can  be 
formed  of  the  amount  of  pain  and  suffering  prevented 
in  this  way.  Limbs  are  now  amputated,  and  the  dan- 
gerous and  bloody  work  of  the  surgeon's  knife  and  saw 
can  now  be  performed,  upon  living  subjects  as  uncon- 
scious of  pain  as  though  they  were  folded  in  the  arms  of 
natural  sleep.  Hospitals  have  become  comparatively 
pleasant  retreats,  and  grim-visaged  war  has  been  robbed 
of  many  of  its  ancient  terrors  by  means  of  this  invalu- 
able discovery. 

According  to  the  laws  of  nature,  all  life  must  terminate 
by  the  lapse  of  time  ;  and  it  is  the  province  of  the  physi- 
cian to  contend  with  the  multiform  enemies  of  human 
existence  until  these  laws  have  produced  their  legiti- 
mate results.  He  is  called  to  the  tender  offices  of  the 
nursery,  to  provide  for  the  indiscretions  of  youth,  to 
re-establish  the  vigor  of  mature  years,  and  to  soften  the 
sorrows  and  sufferings  of  decrepitude  and  old  age. 
Here  is  a  broad  field  for  the  cultivation  and  exercise  of 
the  noblest  qualilies  of  human  nature.  To  be  able  to 
interpret  correctly  the  symptoms  of  a  disease,  and  to 
apply  the  proper  remedy,  is,  of  course,  the  first  qualifi- 
cation for  a  physician  ;  but  there  are  other  means  by 
which  he  can  contribute,  if  not  to  the  health,  at  least  to 
the  comfort  of  suffering  humanity. 


164        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  the  operations  of  the  mind 
have  great  influence  upon  the  body,  especially  when 
it  is  unnerved  or  enfeebled  by  disease.  Faith,  it  is 
said,  will  remove  mountains,  and  confidence  in  the 
capacity  and  integrity  of  the  physician  is  like  a  bow  of 
promise  in  the  chamber  of  sickness.  Who  has  not  seen 
the  dull  eye  brighten  and  a  flush  mantle  the  pallid  cheek 
when  it  has  been  announced  that  the  doctor  has  come  ? 
For  the  victims  of  disease  and  suffering,  there  is  strength 
in  cheerful  words,  hope  in  a  smiling  countenance,  and 
courage  in  the  confident  demeanor  of  the  physician. 

Sickness  is  no  respecter  of  persons,  and,  like  the  wind, 
goeth  where  it  listeth  ;  and  oftentimes  the  physician 
is  required  to  follow  it  to  the  abodes  of  want  and  desti- 
tution. Difficult  and  disagreeable  duties  in  this  way  are 
imposed  upon  him,  without  the  prospect  of  receiving 
compensation  for  his  services.  This  is  a  severe  task, 
but  it  is  one  that  cannot  properly  be  shunned.  Human- 
ity demands  that  the  impecunious,  the  impoverished  and 
the  immoral,  as  well  as  the  more  deserving,  should  be 
cared  for  in  sickness,  and  no  inconsiderable  part  of  the 
burden  falls  upon  the  medical  fraternity.  This  is  a 
work  that  is  twice  blessed:  "It  blesseth  him  that 
gives  and  him  that  takes."  Good  physicians  must  be 
good  Samaritans.  They  must  exercise  that  charity 
which  is  "gentle  and  easy  to  be  entreated."  The 
crowning  glory  of  a  Christian  civilization  is  its  char- 
itable institutions.  Whatever  may  be  thought  or  said 
of  religious  creeds  and  ceremonies,  the  tenderness  of 
church  organizations  for  the  poor,  the  unfortunate  and 
the  afflicted, —  their  sisterhoods  of  charity  and  mercy, — 
their  homes  and  schools  and  hospitals, —  will  make 
and  preserve  for  them  an  impregnable  wall  of  protection 
and  defense.  Personal  courage  deserves  and  com- 
mands our  admiration.  We  call  the  man  a  hero  who 


THE  STUDY  AND  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICINE.     165 

faces  death  upon  the  battle-field.  Our  great  men  are 
those  who  have  distinguished  themselves  in  the  brilliant 
and  exciting  scenes  of  war  ;  but  the  physician  who  is 
called  upon  to  fight  the  wasting  pestilence, —  who  goes 
when  bidden  to  the  murky  seats  of  contagion,  and  who 
confronts  as  duty  requires  the  invisible  arrows  of 
death, — displays  as  much  true  heroism  as  the  fierce 
warrior  upon  fields  of  blood  and  carnage. 

Modern  philanthropy  and  medical  science  have  joined 
hands  to  promote  the  sanitary  interests  of  the  people. 
Medical  societies,  boards  of  health  and  quarantine  regu- 
lations are  efficient  means,  not  only  for  the  advancement 
of  knowledge,  but  for  the  preservation  of  public  health. 
Asylums  for  the  insane  and  intemperate  have  been 
founded,  and  homes  and  hospitals  established  for  those 
who,  on  account  of  their  bodily  infirmities,  need  succor, 
sympathy  and  aid.  All  of  these  beneficent  institutions 
are  more  or  less  under  the  supervision  of  the  medical 
profession.  No  one  can  estimate  their  value  in  pre- 
venting the  spread  of  infectious  and  contagious  dis- 
eases, or  appreciate  their  influence  in  the  prolongation 
of  human  life.  Generations  may  come  and  go,  but 
these  things  will  go  on  forever.  Men  always  have 
violated  and  always  will  violate  the  laws  of  their 
being,  and  those  laws  execute  themselves.  No  judge 
or  jury  is  required,  but  pain  and  suffering  follow  the 
transgression  with  as  much  certainty  as  night  follows 
the  day.  Microbes  float  in  the  atmosphere  and  poison 
the  air  we  inhale.  Our  labors  and  pleasures  are  full  of 
pitfalls  and  perils,  and  whatever  may  befall  other  avoca- 
tions, the  services  of  the  physician  and  surgeon  will 
always  be  in  demand. 

Ambition  agitates  and  pervades  our  age  and  country. 
Some  seek  for  glory  in  the  achievements  of  war,  some 
for  distinction  in  the  accumulation  of  wealth,  and  others 


166       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

aspire  to  office  and  power  ;  but  there  is  no  ambition  more 
useful  than  the  ambition  to  combat  and  conquer  the  mul- 
titudinous ills  which  afflict  the  human  family.  Every 
man  who  belongs  to  a  profession  contributes  something 
to  its  honor  and  elevation,  or  something  to  its  discredit 
and  dishonor.  To  know  a  rule  of  practice  is  good,  but 
it  is  better  to  know  the  reasons  of  the  rule.  There  is  a 
philosophy  in  every  science  ;  and  the  deeper  the  practi- 
tioner goes  into  that,  the  higher  he  will  rise  in  his  pro- 
fession. Many  professional  men  are  content  with  the 
knowledge  they  acquire  in  learning  their  profession. 
They  stop  studying,  and  they  stop  growing.  Their 
"Castle  of  Indolence"  is  a  fortress  of  mediocrity. 
Different  men  no  doubt  have  different  aptitudes  for  dif- 
erent  spheres  of  life.  Some  are  born  with  a  poetical 
faculty,  some  have  a  natural  taste  for  painting,  and 
some  have  an  innate  adaptability  for  the  learned  pro- 
fessions not  possessed  by  others  ;  but  it  not  infrequently 
happens  that  the  untiring  student  outstrips  his  more 
brilliant  but  less  industrious  competitor.  To  be  what 
he  ought  to  be  and  may  be,  the  physician  should  aim 
to  be  respectable,  if  not  distinguished,  in  his  profession. 
He  may  plod  along  in  obscurity  for  a  mere  livelihood, 
or  he  may  be  a  leader  in  the  ranks, —  a  "hero  in  the 
strife."  Success  is  not  a  chance  in  a  lottery,  but  the 
prize  of  a  struggle.  Professional  men  must  ' '  learn  to 
labor  and  to  wait."  True  merit  will  generally  find  its 
just  reward.  "  Seest  thou  a  man  diligent  in  his  busi- 
ness? He  shall  stand  before  kings."  And  let  it  be 
remembered  that 

"  Perseverance 

Keeps  honor  bright.   To  have  done,  is  to  hang 
Quite  out  of  fashion,  like  a  rusty  mail 
In  monumental  mockery." 


THE  PORTLAND  EXPOSITION.  167 


THE    PORTLAND    EXPOSITION. 


ADDRESS     DELIVERED    AT     THE    OPENING    OF   THE    EXPOSITION    IN 
PORTLAND,  OREGON,  SEPTEMBER  18,    1891. 


This  is  the  opening  day  of  the  greatest  exposition,  in 
some  respects,  ever  held  upon  the  Pacific  Coast.  I  do 
not  refer  so  much  to  the  size  of  the  building,  or  to  the 
number  of  persons  present,  as  to  the  completeness,  har- 
mony and  excellence  of  the  arrangements  —  the  multi- 
tudinous productions  of  diversified  industry  and  the 
extraordinary  collections  of  music  and  art.  Good  judg- 
ment and  good  taste  have  made  this  place  look  like  those 
enchanted  castles  of  which  we  read.  Inventions  of 
almost  every  description,  combining  utility  and  beauty  ; 
music  laden  with  melodies  from  the  halls  of  the  Monte- 
zumas  ;  paintings  of  the  old  masters  from  the  most 
renowned  galleries  of  the  East, — make  this  an  exhibi- 
tion of  surpassing  attractiveness  and  beauty.  We  owe  to 
the  Giver  of  all  good  our  grateful  acknowledgment  for 
the  auspicious  circumstances  under  which  we  are 
assembled.  A  glorious  summer  is  gliding  into  a  golden 
an tu inn.  No  cloudbursts,  cyclones  or  hailstorms  have 
devastated  our  state  ;  no  drouth  has  scorched  our  soil 
with  its  withering  breath  ;  no  pestilence  has  draped  our 
habitations  in  mourning  ;  sunshine  and  shower  have 
smiled  upon  us  with  equal  blessings  ;  the  generous  earth 
has  honored  the  faith  of  the  husbandman  ;  our  store- 
houses and  granaries  are  bursting  with  a  bountiful  har- 
vest ;  and  it  is  true  of  us,  what  the  poet  said  of  a  less 
favored  country  : 

"  How  has  kind  heaven  adorned  this  happy  land. 
And  scattered  blessings  with  a  wasteful  hand." 


168       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

We  have  come  here  to  see  the  evidences  of  our  growth 
and  prosperity.  People  are  here  who  came  to  this  state 
when  there  were  no  towns  or  cities,  stages  or  steamboats, 
within  its  borders.  Some  are  here,  to  see  these  wonder- 
ful achievements  of  industry  and  art,  who  knew  and 
remember  Oregon  when  the  Indian  pony  and  canoe 
were  its  only  means  of  transportation,  and  herds  of 
timid  deer  fed  undisturbed  upon  its  unshorn  meadows. 
How  marvelous  to  them  must  all  these  changes,  which 
they  have  witnessed,  appear  !  How  wonderful  the 
transformation  from  the  scantiness  of  pioneer  life  to 
this  vast  scene  of  magnificence  and  beauty  !  They  can 
bear  witness  to  what  civilization  has  done  for  a  country. 
Among  other  noticeable  things,  they  have  seen  a  revolu- 
tion in  farming  operations.  Once,  within  their  knowl- 
edge, the  farmer  plodded  his  weary  way  behind  his  plow, 
or  with  toilsome  step  followed  his  harrow  ;  but  now, 
if  he  chooses,  he  rides  at  his  ease  in  these  occupations. 
Once,  within  their  knowledge,  the  sower  carried  the  seed 
upon  his  shoulder,  and  scattered  it  with  his  single  hand  ; 
but  now  he  rides  a  machine  that  performs  that  labor 
with  wonderful  speed  and  accuracy.  Once,  within  their 
knowledge,  the  implements  for  making  hay  were  the 
scythe,  the  pitchfork  and  the  hand-rake,  and  the  harvest- 
ing was  done  by  one  to  cut  down  the  grain,  and  another 
to  follow,  binding  it  into  sheaves ;  but  now  machines 
propelled  by  horse-power,  with  their  numerous  knives 
and  wheels  and  bands,  have  made  all  this  work  more  of 
a  pastime  than  a  drudgery,  as  it  formerly  was,  to  the 
farmer. 

From  the  ground  to  the  granary  there  is  a  succession 
of  machines,  seeming  to  possess  every  power  necessary 
for  the  cultivation  of  the  earth,  excepting  the  intelligence 


THE  PORTLAND  EXPOSITION.  169 

of  man.  Within  these  walls,  all  these  labor-saving 
inventions  are  put  upon  competitive  exhibition.  Here 
all  those  interested  can  see  what  science  has  done 
to  substitute  the  use  of  iron,  steel  and  wood,  for  the 
wear  and  tear  of  the  muscles,  sinews  and  nerves  of  the 
human  system.  Contiguous  to  this  building  is  an 
enclosure  in  which  are  representatives  of  the  horses, 
cattle,  sheep  and  swine  of  our  state.  Some  of  us,  who 
can  remember  when  our  stock  consisted  chiefly  of  cay- 
use  horses  and  Spanish  cattle,  can  duly  appreciate  this 
part  of  the  exposition.  Here  is  a  department  in  which 
the  ambition  of  the  farmer  can  find  its  highest  gratifi- 
cation. Pictures  of  cattle,  sheep  and  horses  are  the 
common  features  of  a  beautiful  landscape,  and  great 
painters  have  made  them  the  subject  of  the  highest  art. 
We  have  here  horses,  cattle  and  sheep  that  would 
delight  the  eyes  of  a  Landseer  and  baffle  the  skill  of  a 
Rosa  Bonheur.  Our  exhibits  of  grains,  vegetables, 
fruits  and  flowers  are  fit  not  only  to  challenge  universal 
admiration,  but  to  show  the  unsurpassed  fertility  of  our 
soil,  and  the  variety  of  its  productions.  We  can  show 
specimens  of  wheat  as  good  as  the  earth  ever  produced, 
with  specimens  of  vegetables  and  fruits  that  will  com- 
pare favorably  with  similar  productions  in  any  part  of 
the  world. 

Spread  out  before  us  are  ores  from  our  mines,  indicat- 
ing the  inexhaustible  stores  of  wealth  that  our  moun- 
tains and  rocks  bear  in  their  bosoms.  We  live  in  a  land 
congenial  to  the  growth  of  flowers  ;  they  speak  to  us  in 
a  language  of  many  meanings  ;  they  teach,  with  their 
graceful  forms  and  peerless  colors,  the  highest  lessons  of 
art  ;  they  smile  upon  us  with  a  refining  influence,  and 
goodness  and  purity  are  affiliated  with  the  love  of  their 


170       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

cultivation.  When  I  see  upon  the  window-sill  or  door- 
step of  a  dwelling  a  bunch  of  growing  flowers,  I  feel 
sure  that  within  that  home,  however  poor  or  humble  it 
may  be,  there  is  a  sentiment  which  under  favorable  cir- 
cumstances would  expand  into  an  exalted  life. 

"  Spake  full  well,  in  language  quaint  and  olden, 

One  who  dwelleth  by  the  castled  Rhine, 
When  he  called  the  flowers,  so  blue  and  golden, 
Stars,  that  in  earth's  firmament  do  shine." 

One  thought  rises  above  all  others  in  connection  with 
this  great  exposition,  and  that  is  the  thought  of  improve- 
ment. Every  year  breaks  the  record  of  every  preced- 
ing year  with  something  new  and  better.  Does  human 
progress  belong  to  Infinity?  Or,  if  not,  when  and  where 
shall  we  find  its  end  ?  Man  may  come  and  man  may  go, 
but  it  seems  that  the  increase  of  knowledge,  like  Ten- 
nyson's brook,  is  to  "go  on  forever."  The  wonder 
of  the  age  is  the  appropriation  of  invisible  forces  to 
produce  practical  results.  Great  ships  navigate  the 
seas  without  any  visible  means  of  propulsion  ;  and  an 
unseen  hand,  with  unerring  skill,  controls  the  compass 
of  the  mariner.  Railroad  trains  rush  over  the  land  in 
all  directions,  driven  by  the  struggles  of  an  unseen  giant 
to  escape  from  his  iron  prison.  Cars  filled  with  people 
dash  along  our  streets  with  no  motive  power  to  be  seen, 
and  nothing  to  be  heard  but  the  rattling  of  rapid  wheels 
and  the  ringing  of  warning  bells.  When  the  shadows 
of  night  gather  over  our  cities,  from  out  the  invisible 
world  there  come  upon  the  darkness  a  thousand  brilliant 
lights,  in  whose  presence  the  moon  and  stars  "pale  their 
ineffectual  fires."  Messages  are  transported  from  place 
to  place,  and  to  distant  parts  of  the  world,  by  a  flash  of 
unseen  lightning  ;  and  conversation  is  carried  on,  with 


THE  PORTLAND  EXPOSITION.  171 

miles  between  the  speakers.  When  the  proper  time 
arrives,  all  these  ponderous  machines  will  be  set  in 
motion,  and  this  great  building  made  to  tremble,  by  a 
power  that  no  eye  can  see,  and  no  hand  can  touch. 
Byron's  apostrophe  to  the  ocean  may  fitly  be  addressed 
to  electricity,  —  "boundless,  endless  and  sublime." 
Every  few  days,  we  are  told  of  some  new  discovery 
or  new  application  of  this  inscrutable  force,  and  we 
try  in  vain  to  imagine  what  miracles  in  this  line  the 
future  will  reveal. 

We  ought  to  be  made  wiser  and  better  by  what  we  see 
and  hear  in  this  exposition.  There  are  books  in  what 
is  made  by  man,  and  sermons  in  what  is  raised  from  the 
earth.  We  can  here  take  in  at  a  glance  what  has  cost 
others  years  of  study  and  labor  to  create.  The  ages 
have  been  formulating  lessons  for  our  instruction.  There 
are  ideas  in  iron,  thoughts  in  wood,  and  suggestions  in 
structure,  which  may  be  made  the  subject  of  profitable 
reflections.  We  are  surrounded  here  by  a  wilderness  of 
beautiful  things  ;  and  the  poet  has  prettily  said  that 

"A  thing  of  beauty  is  a  joy  for  ever  : 
Its  loveliness  increases ;  it  will  never 
Pass  into  nothingness." 

Things  of  beauty  are  closely  allied  to  the  good,  the 
true  and  the  pure,  and  as  distinctly  foreign  to  the  base, 
the  sordid  and  the  savage.  There  is  a  benefit  as  well 
as  a  pleasure  in  looking  at  beautiful  things.  They 
quicken  the  finer  sensibilities  of  our  natures  :  they 
mirror  themselves  in  our  thoughts  :  they  lift  us  with 
an  elevating  tendency  toward  a  higher  life. 

To  crown  all  this  magnificent  display,  these  halls  are 
to  be  filled  even-  day,  while  the  exposition  continues, 
with  a  "concord  of  sweet  sounds."  Of  all  the  means 


172       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

devised  to  please  mankind,  music  is  the  most  univers- 
ally employed  to  that  end.  Wedding  marches  and 
funeral  dirges,  military  airs  and  sacred  melodies,  are 
common  to  all  civilized  countries  and  all  conditions  of 
people.  Music  gives  to  our  homes  a  foretaste  of  heaven, 
enlivens  the  services  of  the  sanctuary  with  its  inspiring 
strains,  and  draws  to  the  ballroom  and  theater  with  its 
"voluptuous  swell."  Our  highest  conception  of  hap- 
piness is  to  enjoy  the  harmonies  of  the  heavenly  world. 
Thousands  will  come  to  occupy  seats  in  the  grand  gallery 
around  us  who  will  temporarily  drown  the  cares  and 
troubles  of  life  in  waves  of  music,  floating  heavenward 
from  this  stand  to  fill  their  ears  and  captivate  their 
thoughts  and  feelings. 

Everybody  is  invited  to  this  exposition,  and  especially 
those  who  live  in  this  great  northwestern  part  of  our 
country,  of  which  Portland  is  the  metropolis.  Mer- 
chants, manufacturers,  farmers,  miners  and  mechanics 
are  expected  to  hold  a  great  convention  here  for  their 
mutual  instruction  and  improvement.  Here  they  can 
combine  business  and  pleasure.  Let  all  come,  and  a 
cordial  welcome  is  extended  to  all.  Here  are  useful 
lessons  for  the  men,  recreation  and  rest  for  the  women, 
and  innocent  amusements  for  the  children.  Let  us  hope 
that  all  things  here  will  work  together  for  good,  and 
that  in  after  time  we  may  look  back  with  pleasure  to  the 
Portland  Exposition  of  1891. 


JUDGE  MATTHEW  P.  DEADY.  173 


JUDGE    MATTHEW    P.   DEADY. 


ADDRESS     UPON   HIS    DEATH,    DELIVERED     AT    PORTLAND,    OREGON. 
APRIL  1,  1893. 


May  It  Please  the  Court :  Since  the  death  of 
Judge  Deady,  those  mournful  lines  of  the  poet  Moore 
have  frequently  come  into  my  mind  : 

I  feel  like  one  who  treads  alone  some  banquet  hall  deserted, 

Whose  lights  are  fled, 

Whose  garlands  dead, 
And  all  but  he  departed. 

When  I  came  to  Oregon  in  1853,  with  an  appoint- 
ment as  Chief-Justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  ter- 
ritory, I  found  Judges  Deady  and  Olney  here  as  associ- 
ate justices  of  that  court.  They  are  now  both  dead, 
and  I  am  the  sole  survivor  of  all  those  who  were  judges 
under  the  territorial  government  of  Oregon.  I  was 
seventy  years  old  last  Sunday,  and  celebrated  my  birth- 
day by  following  to  the  grave  one  whom  I  had  known 
for  forty  years,  and  whose  age,  less  a  year  and  two 
months,  was  also  three-score  years  and  ten. 

I  recur  to  the  time  when  I  was  associated  with  Judges 
Deady  and  Olney  in  the  territorial  government,  with 
agreeable  recollections.  Our  personal  and  official  rela- 
tions were  kindly  and  cordial,  though  all  of  us  were 
somewhat  firm  and  unyielding  in  our  opinions  ;  and  I 
now  recall  one  instance  when  we  sat  down  at  a  table  in 
my  residence  at  Salem  to  consider  a  case,  and  continued 
the  discussion,  with  no  little  animation,  until  we 
adjourned  for  breakfast  in  the  broad  daylight  of  the 
next  morning. 


174       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

Judges  Deady  and  Olney  were  both  men  of  fine  natural 
abilities,  and  in  those  early  days  were  compelled,  in  the 
discharge  of  their  official  duties,  to  rely  more  upon  their 
brains  than  upon  their  books.  The  results  were  emi- 
nently satisfactory. 

We  were  all  of  us  at  that  time  comparatively  young 
men,  full  of  ambition,  energy  and  hope,  and  with  bright 
anticipations  as  to  the  future  of  the  new  country  with 
which  we  then  became  identified.  As  to  the  state,  our 
anticipations  have  been  realized. 

I  knew  Olney  in  Iowa,  as  a  lawyer  and  a  judge.  He 
was  elected  judge  of  the  second  judicial  district  at  the 
first  election  under  the  state  organization  in  1847  ;  and 
I  was  chosen,  at  the  same  election,  judge  of  the  first 
judicial  district  of  that  state.  Judge  Olney  was  mod- 
est, retiring  and  rather  eccentric,  but  no  ordinary  man. 
I  have  come  in  contact  with  a  great  many  lawyers  in 
the  course  of  a  professional  experience  of  nearly  fifty 
years  ;  but  I  have  never  met  one  who,  in  my  judgment, 
could  dovetail  the  facts  and  circumstances  of  a  case 
together  with  more  completeness  and  convincing  effect 
than  Cyrus  Olney  :  but,  notwithstanding  this,  my  opin- 
ion is  that  his  qualifications  for  a  judge  were  not  equal 
to  those  possessed  by  Judge  Deady. 

Poets,  painters  and  orators  are  not  made,  but  born  ; 
that  is  to  say,  any  one  of  these,  to  become  great,  must 
have  a  natural  aptitude  for  his  vocation  :  and  this  holds 
true,  I  believe,  as  to  judges.  Judge  Deady  had  by  nature 
a  judicial  mind.  His  inclination  and  practice  were  to 
drive  through  the  technicalities  to  the  vital  points  of  a 
case.  When  he  made  up  his  mind  that  a  certain  result 
in  a  case  was  right,  he  was  accustomed  to  remove  with  a 
strong  hand  all  obstacles  to  the  attainment  of  that  end. 


JUDGE  MATTHEW  P.  DEADY.      175 

There  were  some  things  about  Judge  Deady  that  I 
did  not  particularly  admire,  but  there  was  one  thing 
about  him  that  commanded  my  highest  admiration  : 
there  was  no  sign  or  taint  of  the  demagogue  about  him. 
He  was  independent  and  fearless.  He  was  unmoved  by 
popular  prejudice  or  public  censure.  He  was  not  always 
looking  out  of  the  windows  of  the  court-house  to  see 
which  way  the  popular  breeze  was  blowing.  When  a 
corporation  was  a  party  to  a  suit  before  him,  he  was  not 
afraid  to  decide  in  favor  of  the  corporation  because  it 
might  expose  him  to  newspaper  criticisms  ;  and  when  a 
poor  and  friendless  Chinaman  was  before  him  as  a  liti- 
gant, he  was  not  afraid  to  decide  in  favor  of  the  China- 
man because  the  decision  might  be  unpopular.  He  had 
the  courage  to  make  his  judgments  according  to  his 
convictions.  I  know  of  no  higher  praise  that  I  can 
bestow  upon  a  judge  than  to  say  of  him  that  he  admin- 
istered the  law  without  fear,  favor  or  affection. 

We  shall  see  Judge  Deady  no  more  upon  the  bench  ; 
but  he  will  continue  to  speak  to  us.  We  shall  cite  and 
read  his  decisions,  and  they  will  be  referred  to  and  read 
in  our  hearing.  Though  dead,  in  this  respect  he 
remains  with  us.  His  written  opinions  have  spread  his 
fame  to  all  parts  of  the  United  States,  and  they  will 
stand,  an  imperishable  monument  to  his  memory. 

No  hand  has  been  so  strongly  and  deeply  impressed 
upon  the  legislative  and  judicial  history  of  Oregon  as 
that  of  Judge  Deady  ;  and  those  who  come  after  us  will 
read  of  his  actings  and  doings  with  feelings  of  pride, 
and  a  profound  sense  of  gratitude  for  his  services  to  the 
state. 


176       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 


THE  DISCOVERY   OF    AMERICA. 


ADDRESS   UPON   THE    400th    ANNIVERSARY  OF    THE    DISCOVERY    OF 

AMERICA  BY  COLUMBUS,    DELIVERED  AT  PORTLAND, 

OREGON,   OCTOBER  22,  1892. 


Every  student  of  history  must  have  observed  that 
there  are  periods  in  the  course  of  time  when  a  group  of 
great  men  appears  like  a  constellation  in  the  heavens  ; 
and  that  there  are  other  long  periods  when  no  remark- 
able personage  appears  to  attract  the  gaze  of  mankind, 
and  break  the  monotony  of  the  times. 

Christopher  Columbus  was  the  cotemporary  of  great 
men  and  great  events.  ^While  Martin  Luther  and  John 
Calvin  were  hurling  defiance  at  the  Roman  pontiff,  and 
striking  titantic  blows  for  religious  freedom,  and 
Ignatius  Loyola  was  founding  the  most  powerful  relig- 
ious body  ever  known,  to  defend  and  support  the  papal 
power  ;  while  the  great  sculptor,  painter,  and  architect, 
Michael  Angelo,  was  at  work  upon  St.  Peter's  at  Rome, 
and  that  great  astronomer,  Copernicus,  was  explaining 
the  clockwork  of  the  skies,  —  Christopher  Columbus  was 
making  a  new  geography  of  continents  and  seas,  and 
demonstrating  the  rotundity  of  the  earth. 

Europe  experienced  a  new  life  with  the  discovery  of 
a  new  world.  Letters  broke  out  of  monastic  cells,  in 
which  they  had  been  slumbering  for  ages  ;  art  was 
revived,  and  reappeared  in  forms  of  Grecian  grace  and 
Roman  majesty;  and  science,  throwing  off  its  mediaeval 
shackles,  surveyed  the  heavens  with  a  new  vision  of 
their  harmony,  and  sailed  the  seas  with  new  ideas  as  to 
the  conformation  of  the  earth.  Ambition  and  avarice, 


THE  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA.  177 

no  doubt,  had  their  influence  ;  but  the  commotions, 
changes  and  discoveries  of  that  day  were  chiefly  due  to 
convulsions  in  the  religious  world.  That  was  an  age  in 
which  everybody  was  ruled  and  everything  was  done  in 
the  name  of  religion  ;  and  the  teaching  of  the  church 
was  the  standard  by  which  every  enterprise  was 
approved  or  condemned.  Asia  was  lying  adjacent  to 
Europe  on  the  east  ;  but  Columbus  conceived  the  idea 
that  he  could  reach  Asia  by  sailing  westward  from  the 
coast  of  Spain, —  an  idea  involving  the  conception  of 
the  globular  form  of  the  earth. 

When  he  made  known  his  theory,  it  was  opposed  by 
principalities  and  powers  in  church  and  state,  chiefly 
upon  the  ground  that  it  was  in  conflict  with  the  cos- 
mogony of  the  Bible.  Columbus  was  a  devout  Catholic, 
and  did  not  question  the  authority  of  his  church  ;  but 
the  innovating  spirit  of  the  age  seems  to  have  caught 
his  intellectual  vision,  and  lifted  it  above  the  prevailing 
ignorance  and  prejudice  of  his  country. 

To  estimate  the  greatness  of  a  successful  man,  it  is 
necessary  to  consider  the  circumstances  under  which  he 
achieved  success.  Greatness,  as  the  world  esteems  great- 
ness, is  a  relative  term.  Shakespeare  says  that  "some 
are  born  great,  some  achieve  greatness,  and  some  have 
greatness  thrust  upon  them.'1  Columbus,  as  much  as 
any  man,  achieved  his  greatness  ;  and  the  proof  of  this 
is  not  only  found  in  his  great  voyage,  but  in  the  pro- 
tracted and  tremendous  struggle  he  was  compelled  to 
make  to  provide  ways  and  means  for  that  voyage.  Men, 
money  and  ships  were  necessary  to  his  great  undertak- 
ing ;  and  of  these  he  had  none.  He  asked  his  native 
city,  Genoa,  for  help  ;  but  his  application  was  treated 
with  derision  and  contempt.  He  appealed  to  King  John 


178        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

of  Portugal,  and  was  turned  away  empty.  He  inter- 
viewed dukes  and  lords  upon  his  favorite  topic  without 
success,  and,  as  a  last  resort,  petitioned  Ferdinand  and 
Isabella  of  Castile  and  L/eon  for  aid.  His  petition  was 
referred  to  a  junta  of  ecclesiastics,  and  rejected  on 
account  of  its  alleged  visionary  and  heretical  views  ;  and 
so,  for  nearly  twenty  years,  he  traveled,  argued,  impor- 
tuned and  toiled,  until  penury  compelled  him  to  beg  for 
his  daily  subsistence. 

"  God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way 
His  wonders  to  perform." 

So  it  happened  that  while  begging  at  the  door  of  a 
monastery  for  bread  and  water,  he  found  a  congenial 
spirit  in  a  good  friar  who  listened  to  his  glowing  words, 
and  took  an  interest  in  his  project  ;  and  through  his 
priestly  influence,  Queen  Isabella  was  induced  to  recall 
her  first  decision,  and  to  furnish  Columbus  with  the 
necessary  men  and  supplies  for  his  contemplated 
voyage. 

No  man  ever  encountered  greater  discouragements, 
and  no  man  was  ever  more  determined  not  to  be 
discouraged.  He  was  considered  a  lunatic  by  the 
state,  and  a  heretic  by  the  church.  He  was  sneered 
at,  ridiculed,  denounced  and  persecuted  ;  but  he 
maintained  his  convictions,  and  stood  unshaken  by 
the  storms  of  opposition  about  him,  like  Teneriffe 
amid  the  waves  of  the  ocean.  Columbus  personified 
the  sublimity  of  faith  :  while  he  appeared  to  be 
baffled  on  every  hand,  some  good  angel  was  continu- 
ally whispering  in  his  ear  those  words  of  immortal 
import,  u  According  to  your  faith  be  it  unto  you."  It 
takes  great  faith  to  make  a  great  man.  Columbus  had 
faith  in  his  convictions,  faith  in  his  courage,  faith  in  his 
capacity,  and,  above  all,  faith  in  God. 


THE  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA.  179 

It  is  impossible  to  tell  how  much  religious  zeal  had  to 
do  with  the  discovery  of  America  ;  but  it  was  no  small 
factor  in  that  event.  To  increase  the  wealth  and  power 
of  Spain  was  the  ambition  of  Columbus  ;  but  to  spread 
the  Catholic  religion  was  his  inspiration.  Apparently, 
his  devotion  to  the  church  was  not  weakened  by  its 
antagonism  to  his  studies  of  geography.  Priest  and 
peasant  were  alike  ignorant  upon  that  subject.  Juan 
Perez  Marchena,  the  good  friar  who  assisted  Columbus, 
and  whose  name  ought  not  to  be  forgotten  upon  an  occa- 
sion of  this  kind,  belonged  to  an  order  whose  lives  were 
wholly  given  up  to  their  church  ;  and  no  doubt  his  zeal  was 
influenced  by  the  prospect  that  if  Columbus  discovered 
new  lands,  they  would  add  to  the  dominion  of  the  papal 
see.  Queen  Isabella  was  a  religious  fanatic,  and,  next 
to  the  interest  of  her  throne,  her  ambition  was  to 
broaden  the  boundaries  and  strengthen  the  power  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  church. 

On  the  third  day  of  August,  1492,  with  three  small 
vessels  and  120  men,  Columbus  set  sail  upon  his  memor- 
able voyage.  There  are  few  examples  in  history  of 
such  courage.  We  cannot  understand  how  he  was  able 
to  supply  his  ships  with  men.  Before  them  was  an 
ocean,  "boundless,  endless  and  sublime."  No  sail  had 
ever  struggled  with  its  mighty  winds,  and  no  keel  had 
ever  parted  its  measureless  billows.  Everything  was 
shrouded  in  an  awful  uncertainty.  Every  day  carried 
the  men  upon  their  ships  further  from  home  and  friends  ; 
and  every  day  bore  them  on  further  into  the  vast 
unknown.  Naturally,  they  would  be  afraid  under  such 
circumstances  ;  and  finally  they  became  so  alarmed  by 
real  or  imaginary  dangers,  that  they  were  ready  to  sci/.e 
the  ships,  and  by  force  turn  their  course  homeward. 


180        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

Here,  again,  is  the  evidence  that  Columbus  was  a 
great  man.  Among  the  fearful,  he  alone  was  fearless. 
Difficulties  and  delays  did  not  weaken  his  faith  or  cour- 
age ;  and  that  he  was  able  to  control  his  superstitious 
and  insubordinate  sailors,  shows  that  he  was  able  to  gov- 
ern men  as  well  as  to  navigate  the  seas. 

On  the  12th  of  October,  1492,  that  discovery  was 
made  which  we  have  met  to  celebrate, —  a  discovery,  if 
measured  by  its  results,  second  to  no  event  in  the  history 
of  the  human  race.  Rising  like  the  poet's  Venus  from 
the  sea,  a  land  of  enchantment  broke  upon  the  vision  of 
the  once  disheartened  but  now  exultant  mariners. 
Instead  of  a  barren  waste  of  waters,  before  them  was  a 
scene  of  forests  luxuriant  with  green  foliage  and  golden 
fruit,  flowers  of  exquisite  beauty  and  fragrance,  birds 
of  brilliant  plumage,  and  all  the  gorgeous  productions 
of  a  tropical  climate.  Columbus  and  his  men,  as  they 
landed  upon  those  delightful  shores,  bowed  their  heads 
to  the  earth  with  thankful  hearts,  and  then  and  there, 
for  the  first  time  in  the  Western  hemisphere,  proclaimed 
a  Christian's  faith  in  a  Christian's  God. 

Following  this  momentous  event  came  new  explora- 
tions and  new  discoveries,  and  the  occupation  of  the 
American  continent  by  the  people  of  the  Old  World. 
This  theme  suggests  thoughts  that  overwhelm  the 
mind.  I  take  up  one  idea  :  others,  no  doubt,  will  dis- 
cover different  aspects  of  the  subject.  I  have  said  that 
religion  had  much  to  do  with  the  discovery  of  America: 
it  is  also  true  that  religion  had  much  to  do  with  its 
settlement.  It  may  sound  strange  to  say  that  religious 
persecutions  have  been  fruitful  of  blessings  to  mankind, 
but  the  same  idea  is  substantially  expressed  in  the  say- 
ing that  "the  blood  of  the  martyrs  is  the  seed  of  the 


THE  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA.  181 

church."  Prior  to  the  year  1600,  all  of  the  United 
States  north  of  Florida  was  an  unbroken  wilderness. 
There  was  no  sound  of  civilization  anywhere  to  dis- 
turb its  gloomy  solitudes.  Religious  persecutions  were 
incident  to  the  religious  disturbances  of  the  old  world. 
Catholics  persecuted  Protestants,  and  Protestants  perse- 
cuted Catholics.  America  was  looked  upon  as  a  land  in 
which  there  was  no  priest  or  king,  and  where  those 
denied  their  religious  freedom  in  Europe  could  enjoy 
the  rights  of  conscience.  In  1620,  a  little  band  of  peo- 
ple, persecuted  on  account  of  their  religious  faith,  sailed 
from  Holland  in  the  Mayflower,  and  on  the  21st  day  of 
December  of  that  year,  amid  the  storms  of  a  northern 
winter,  landed  upon  "a  wild  New  England  shore." 
"What  sought  they  thus  afar? 

Bright  jewels  of  the  mine  ? 
The  wealth  of  seas  ?    The  spoils  of  war  ? — 

They  sought  a  faith's  pure  shrine." 

Whatever  may  be  said  of  the  motives  of  Columbus, 
and  of  those  who  contributed  to  the  discovery  of 
America,  no  one  can  doubt  that  civilization  is  indebted 
to  religion  for  the  yet  unconquered  banner  of  freedom 
that  was  raised  upon  Plymouth  Rock.  I  agree  that  the 
Puritans  were  not  as  liberal  or  tolerant  as  they  ought  to 
have  been,  or  as  their  descendants  are  ;  but,  notwith- 
standing all  that  can  truthfully  be  said  against  them, 
my  opinion  is  that  the  political,  religious  and  educa- 
tional institutions  and  influences  proceeding  from  them 
have  contributed  as  much  to  the  growth,  prosperity  and 
greatness  of  the  American  republic  as  all  other  influ- 
ences combined,  if  not  more. 

Later  on,  the  Huguenots  were  driven  from  France  by 
religious  persecutors,  and,  fleeing  across  the  ocean,  col- 
onized the  Carolinas  with  a  people  who  had  left  home 


182       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

and  friends  and  native  land  to  find  a  place  where  they 
could  worship  God  according  to  their  own  convictions. 
They  were  a  brave,  high-spirited,  self-reliant  people, 
and  have  had  a  powerful  influence  in  moulding  the 
institutions  of  the  southern  states. 

We  are  accustomed  to  speak  harshly  of  the  intoler- 
ance and  bigotry  of  Christianity  in  the  days  of  Colum- 
bus and  the  Puritans  ;  but,  evil  as  these  influences  were, 
it  cannot  be  said  of  them  that  they  were  altogether  bad. 
Generally,  outside  of  statecraft,  a  persecuting  spirit  in 
religion  springs  out  of  deep  and  strong  convictions, 
which  make  men  of  positive  strength  and  power. 
Take,  for  example,  the  Scotch  Presbyterians,  imbued 
with  the  uncompromising  spirit  of  John  Knox.  Take 
the  followers  of  Oliver  Cromwell,  so  fervent  in  prayer 
and  so  terrible  in  battle, —  or  the  French  Protestants, 
whose  leader  was  the  plumed  knight  of  Navarre. 
They  were  religious  bigots  ;  but  they  were  mighty  men 
of  force  and  valor,  and  struck  blows  for  God  and  right 
that  will  resound  "  to  the  last  syllable  of  recorded 
time." 

We  can  form  some  estimate  of  the  early  settlers  of 
this  country  by  comparing  them  with  the  foreigners  who 
are  now  flocking  to  the  United  States.  Better  a  thou- 
sand times  the  Puritans  of  New  England,  the  Catholics 
of  Maryland,  and  the  Huguenots  of  South  Carolina, 
with  their  illiberal  sentiments  upon  the  subject  of  relig- 
ion, whatever  they  were,  than  the  hordes  of  anarchists 
and  infidels  who  are  now  pouring  into  our  country  and 
poisoning  our  political  and  social  life  with  their  pernici- 
ous doctrines. 

Four  hundred  years  have  passed  away  since  Columbus 
discovered  America,  and  every  year  has  added  to  the 
evidence  that  the  Christian  religion  is  the  true  conserv- 
ative force  of  good  government  and  good  society.  I 


THE  DISCOVERY  OF  AMERICA. 

speak  now  exclusively  from  the  standpoint  of  a  citizen, 
without  reference  to  any  sect  or  denomination  of  Chris- 
tians, but  with  express  reference  to  those  rules  of 
human  conduct  accepted  as  Divine  teachings  by  all 
Christendom.  Theological  creeds,  doctrines  and  dog- 
mas, about  which  men  differ,  divide  the  Christian  world 
into  numerous  sects  ;  but  these  do  not  necessarily  affect 
the  relations  or  duties  of  man  to  his  fellow-men.  Citi- 
zenship is  not  especially  concerned  with  the  apostolic 
succession,  predestination,  the  form  of  baptism,  or  any 
other  sectarian  question.  I  do  not  mean  to  detract  from 
the  importance  of  these  in  a  strictly  religious  or  spirit- 
ual sense  ;  but  what  I  mean  to  say  is,  that  any  man  who 
accepts  and  acts  upon  those  Divine  teachings  as  to  which 
all  Christians  agree,  will  and  must  be  a  good  citizen. 

Our  country  is  greatly  disturbed  by  a  bitter  and  some- 
times bloody  contest  between  capital  and  labor.  Pub- 
licists and  lawmakers  are  proposing  and  trying  to  settle 
the  difficulty  by  the  interposition  of  the  government  ; 
but  their  efforts  will  amount  to  little  or  nothing.  Legis- 
lation can  never  reconcile  nor  overcome  the  differences 
between  capital  and  labor.  Our  Divine  Master  has 
given  to  the  world  an  absolute  solution  of  the  great 
problem.  Whenever  men  can  overcome  their  selfishness 
and  greed  of  gain  so  as  to  do  unto  others  as  they  would 
have  others  do  to  them,  then,  and  not  till  then,  will 
the  conflict  between  labor  and  capital  cease  to  exist. 
That  this  consummation,  so  devoutly  to  be  wished, 
will  ever  come,  seems  improbable  ;  but  every  influ- 
ence that  softens  the  heart  and  awakens  the  sym- 
pathies of  man  for  his  fellow-man,  will  bring  the 
world  a  little  nearer  to  universal  peace  and  harmony. 

While  it  must  be  admitted  that  many  wicked  men  are 
working  mischief  under  the  cloak  of  religion,  I  affirm 
—  and  evcrv  man  of  observation  knows  it  to  be-  true 


184       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

that  the  nearer  any  individual  class  or  community  of 
individuals  comes  to  the  standard  of  living  set  up  by 
the  Founder  of  Christianity,  the  better  citizens  they  will 
be  ;  and  that  if  all  would  come  up  to  that  standard,  there 
would  not  be  a  jail  or  a  penitentiary  in  the  land,  or  a 
saloon  at  work  making  criminals  and  paupers. 

While  we  honor  the  memory  of  Columbus,  we  remem- 
ber with  gratitude  the  hardships,  privations  and  perils 
of  the  men  and  women  who  have  carried  the  ark  of 
Christian  civilization  from  one  side  to  the  other  of  the 
American  continent.  In  so  far  as  self-denial,  courage 
and  inflexibility  of  purpose  go  to  make  up  greatness, 
our  great  men  have  lived  in  the  log  cabins  of  the  coun- 
try. Stress  of  circumstances  compelled  them  to  fight 
untamed  Nature  for  a  livelihood,  and  wild  Indians  for 
their  lives.  Their  homes  were  in  the  solitudes  of  the 
wilderness, —  their  faithful  dogs  and  trusty  rifles  their 
needful  champions  and  friends.  They  pushed  aside  the 
wigwam  and  war-dance  with  the  school-house  and  the 
church.  They  have  made  the  way  for  us  to  this  beauti- 
ful land.  Here  is  the  end  of  all  that  Columbus  dis- 
covered. Here  is  the  final  resting-place  of  the  pioneer. 
Going  westward,  emigration  has  travelled  around  the 
globe,  and  now  looks  out  upon  the  waters  from  whose 
western  shores  it  started.  Here  the  East  and  the  West 
come  together  ;  and  whatever  there  may  be  to  excite 
our  fears,  we  may  hope  that,  under  God,  future  genera- 
tions will  find  this  last  meeting-ground  of  nations  and 
races  a  place  where  mercy  and  truth  are  met  together, 
and  righteousness  and  peace  have  kissed  each  other. 


THE  UNITED  STATES  SUPREME  COURT.      185 


THE  UNITED   STATES  SUPREME  COURT. 


ADDRESS    DELIVERED    AT    THE    HIGH    SCHOOL,  PORTLAND,  OREGON. 
OCTOBER   13.  1K93. 


On  motion  of  Reverdy  Johnson,  at  one  time  Attorney- 
General,  and  afterwards  a  senator  in  Congress  from 
Maryland,  I  was  admitted  to  the  bar  of  the  Supreme 
Court  in  1865.  Salmon  P.  Chase  was  then  Chief-Jus- 
tice, and  the  associates  were  James  M.  Wayne,  Robert 
C.  Grier,  Noah  H.  Swayne,  David  Davis,  Samuel  Nel- 
son,  Nathan  Clifford,  Samuel  F.  Miller  and  Stephen  J. 
Field.  All  of  these,  excepting  Justice  Field,  are  now 
dead.  I  was  in  Washington  at  the  inauguration  of 
Franklin  Pierce  in  1853,  and  attended  some  of  the  ses- 
sions of  the  Supreme  Court  at  that  time.  That  court 
then  consisted  of  Roger  B.  Taney,  Chief-Justice,  and 
John  McLean,  James  M.  Wayne,  John  Catron,  Peter  Y. 
Daniel,  Samuel  Nelson,  Robert  C.  Grier,  Benjamin  R. 
Curtis  and  John  A.  Campbell,  associates,  none  of  whom 
are  now  living.  I  never  saw  Taney,  Catron  or  Daniel 
afterward,  and  have  no  very  distinct  impressions  as  to 
Catron  or  Daniel  ;  but  Chief-Justice  Taney  was  a  notice- 
able man,  and  his  appearance  is  still  daguerreotyped 
upon  my  memory.  He  was  a  tall,  angular  and  exceed- 
ingly slim  man.  Apparently,  there  was  little  or  no  flesh 
upon  his  bones  ;  and  his  face  was  deeply  furrowed  by  the 
ravages  of  time.  His  eyes,  surmounted  by  shaggy  eye- 
brows, were  deeply  set  under  a  remarkably  low  forehead. 
There  was  a  rough  and  rugged  distinctness  about  all  his 
features.  He  was  appointed  Chief-Justice  in  1S3<>,  and 
died  in  office  when  he  was  eighty  eight  years  old.  He 


186       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

was  eighty  years  of  age  when  he  delivered  the  opinion  of 
the  court  in  the  celebrated  Dred  Scott  case.  Public 
sentiment  and  subsequent  events  have  overruled  that 
opinion,  but  it  cannot  be  denied  that  it  not  only  proves 
the  great  ability  of  its  author,  but  that  eighty  years  had 
not  impaired  in  any  sensible  degree  his  intellectual 
faculties.  While  I  differ  decidedly  from  his  conclu- 
sions, I  cannot  be  blind  to  the  perspicuity  and  strength 
with  which  he  states  his  views  ;  and,  without  question, 
that  opinion  is  the  most  persuasive  argument  for  the 
extension  of  slavery  under  the  old  Constitution  ever 
put  upon  record.  Chief-Justice  Taney  was  gentle  and 
gracious  in  his  deportment,  and  possessed  all  the 
suaviter  in  modo  of  an  old-fashioned  Southern  gentle- 
man. Marshall  was  chief-justice  thirty-four  and  Taney 
thirty-two  years. 

My  relations  with  Chief-Justice  Chase,  the  successor 
of  Tauey,  were  something  more  than  official.  From 
about  the  time  of  his  appointment  until  his  death,  we 
were  neighbors  and  social  friends.  Chase  was  a  charm- 
ing man,  with  great  faculties,  but  enthralled  by  an 
overpowering  ambition  to  become  President  of  the 
United  States.  He  was  a  victim  of  that 

"Vaulting  ambition  which  o'erleaps  itself, 
And   falls  on  t'other  side." 

He  took  little  or  no  pride  in  the  high  office  which  he 
held,  and  its  labors  and  duties  appeared  to  be  irksome  to 
him.  When  spoken  to  about  his  exalted  position,  he 
disdainfully  declared  that  it  was  nothing — literally  noth- 
ing. Like  Hainan,  of  Biblical  fame,  he  could  not  be 
happy  while  he  saw  another  sitting  in  the  Presidential 
chair.  His  distinction,  before  he  became  Secretary  of 


THE  UNITED  STATES  SUPREME  COURT.      187 

the  Treasury,  was  chiefly  due  to  his  anti-slavery  senti- 
ments, and  the  zeal  and  ability  with  which  he  opposed 
the  enforcement  of  the  fugitive  slave  law  in  Ohio.  But 
after  he  became  Chief-Justice,  it  was  evident  that  he 
anchored  his  hope  of  becoming  President  upon  the  sup- 
port of  the  Democratic  party.  He  foresaw  what  has 
come  to  pass, —  that  for  a  generation  the  Presidential 
candidates  of  the  Republican  party  would  be  taken  from 
the  generals  of  the  Union  army.  He  made  a  tremend- 
ous effort  to  be  nominated  by  the  Democratic  National 
Convention  in  New  York  in  1868,  but  failed,  and  died 
broken-hearted,  if  political  disappointment  ever  broke 
the  heart  of  a  man.  Chief-Justice  Chase,  both  in  form 
and  features,  was  a  handsome  man,  and  in  his  manners 
combined  dignity,  elegance  and  refinement.  He  was 
assisted  in  his  social  duties  by  his  daughter,  Mrs.  Sena- 
tor Sprague,  whose  beauty  and  accomplishments  were 
unequaled  in  Washington  society. 

Justice  Clifford  was  the  senior  justice  by  commission, 
and  therefore  became  acting  Chief-Justice  upon  the  death 
of  Chase.  From  March,  1865,  to  March,  1871,  I  was 
a  fellow-boarder  at  the  National  Hotel  with  Justice 
Clifford,  Justice  Nelson,  Justice  Davis,  and  for  a  large 
part  of  the  time  with  Justice  Miller.  Justice  Clifford 
was  a  large  man,  and  the  impersonation  of  the  highest 
style  of  judicial  decorum  and  propriety.  He  was  proud 
of  his  official  position,  and  the  uppermost  thought  of 
his  mind  in  the  presence  of  others  appeared  to  be,  "I 
am  a  judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States, 
and  don't  you  forget  it."  He  was  not  credited  by  the 
legal  profession  with  abilities  of  the  highest  order,  but 
he  was  a  most  industrious  and  conscientious  judge.  He 
prepared  his  opinions  with  great  care.  I  have  frequently 


188       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

seen  him  writing  them  when  most  of  the  inmates  of  the 
hotel  were  wrapped  in  their  midnight  slumbers.  One 
of  his  peculiarites  was  his  implacable  hostility  to  the 
articles  of  the  English  language.  He  was  a  justice 
of  the  Supreme  Court  for  nearly  twenty-four  years, 
and  delivered  a  great  number  of  opinions  during 
that  time,  but  I  do  not  believe  that  a  sentence 
can  be  found  in  those  opinions  commencing  with  the 
definite  article  "the"  or  the  indefinite  article  "a" 
or  "an."  When  one  of  his  associates  quizzed  him  a 
little  about  his  studied  disuse  of  the  articles,  it  is  said 
that  he  quite  tartly  replied  :  "  Sir,  my  opinions  are 
the  opinions  of  the  court,  but  their  style  is  my  own." 
One  can  see,  in  reading  his  opinions,  that  they  are  fash- 
ioned in  the  same  mold,  and,  so  far  as  forms  of  expres- 
sion are  concerned,  are  as  much  alike  as  peas  in  the 
same  pod.  It  is  the  invariable  custom  of  the  Supreme 
Court,  at  the  beginning  of  each  session,  to  call  upon  the 
President  in  a  body,  accompanied  by  the  Attorney-Gen- 
eral. It  became  my  official  duty  to  attend  upon  one 
occasion  of  this  kind,  with  Clifford  acting  as  Chief-Jus- 
tice, and  the  extreme  punctiliousness  with  which  he 
conducted  that  ceremony  was  interesting  to  behold. 

Chief-Justice  Chase  died  May  7th,  1873,  and  Presi- 
dent Grant  made  the  mistake  of  not  nominating  his 
successor  until  the  meeting  of  Congress  in  the  following 
December.  This  delay  caused  him  great  trouble.  I 
was  favorable  to  the  appointment  of  Justice  Miller  ;  but 
the  President  was  unwilling  to  discriminate  between 
the  judges  on  the  bench,  and  determined  to  adhere  to 
precedent  and  take  an  outside  man.  Accordingly,  the 
appointment  was  tendered  to  Roscoe  Conkling.  To  the 
great  disappointment  of  the  President,  Mr.  Conkliug 


THE  UNITED  STATES  SUPREME  COURT.      189 

declined  the  office.  He  would  have  made  a  splendid 
Chief-Justice  ;  but  he  was  just  commencing  a  term  in  the 
Senate,  and  without  doubt  the  White  House  was  the 
goal  of  his  ambition.  Conkling's  forensic  abilities  were 
great,  and  he  was  great  on  the  floor  of  the  Senate,  but 
he  lacked  coolness  of  judgment  and  self-control.  He 
was  proud,  overbearing,  impetuous  and  vain,  but  withal 
a  friend  to  be  loved  and  a  foeman  to  be  feared.  Mr. 
Conkling's  refusal  to  accept  the  office  left  the  President 
in  a  sea  of  perplexity.  Candidates  were  numerous  and 
their  friends  importunate.  Caleb  dishing  was  nomi- 
nated, but  an  old  letter  that  he  had  written  to  Jefferson 
Davis  at  the  commencement  of  the  civil  war  was  dug 
up,  and  he  was  unceremoniously  rejected  by  the 
Senate.  No  man  of  his  day  was  better  equipped 
than  Caleb  Gushing  for  any  office.  He  was  a  scholar, 
statesman  and  lawyer  of  many  and  varied  attainments. 
Whether  justly  or  not  I  do  not  know,  but  there  seemed 
to  be  among  many  persons  a  lack  of  confidence  in  his 
integrity  of  character.  He  was  slovenly  in  his  habits, 
and  careless  of  his  reputation.  He  lived  chiefly  to  him- 
self and  in  the  society  of  his  books.  President  Grant, 
without  my  knowledge  or  consent,  nominated  me,  after 
the  rejection  of  dishing.  I  had  no  reason  to  expect 
any  support  from  the  Democrats  in  the  Senate,  because  I 
had  been  during  the  war,  and  was  then,  their  active  and 
unsparing  opponent  ;  but  I  was  surprised,  and  so  was  the 
President,  at  the  oppositon  of  some  of  the  Republican 
senators.  I  had  been  twice  confirmed  by  the  Senate, 
once  for  High  Joint  Commissioner  to  make  the  Treaty  of 
Washington,  and  again  for  Attorney-General,  without  the 
usual  reference  of  my  name  to  a  committee.  I  shall 
not  go  into  that  matter  at  this  time  ;  suffice  it  to  say  that 


190       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

the  reasons  for  the  Republican  opposition  to  me  in  the 
Senate  were  not  such  as  were  given  to  the  public  by  the 
newspapers.  Finding 'that  the  Senate  would  not  act 
upon  my  nomination,  and  after  six  weeks  of  suspense,  I 
requested  the  President  to  withdraw  my  name,  which  he 
did  with  reluctance,  and  with  the  assurance  that,  if  I  so 
desired,  he  would  stand  by  me  to  the  bitter  end.  Things 
had  assumed  such  a  shape  with  reference  to  this  office  at 
that  time  that  a  "dark  horse" — to  use  a  political 
expression  —  became  a  necessity.  Morrison  R.  Waite, 
of  Ohio,  was  supposed  to  be  sufficiently  obscure  to  meet 
the  requirements  of  the  occasion.  One  can  readily 
imagine  the  surprise  of  Mr.  Waite  when  I  telegraphed 
to  know  if  he  would  accept  the  office  of  Chief-Justice. 
He  had  never  dreamed  of  such  a  thing.  He,  of  course, 
accepted,  and  was  nominated  and  confirmed. 

Judge  Waite,  at  the  time  of  his  appointment,  had 
never  held  a  federal  office,  had  never  argued  a  case  in 
the  Supreme  Court,  and  was  comparatively  unknown  in 
Washington.  He  had,  however,  been  an  assistant  of 
Gushing  and  Evarts  before  the  Geneva  tribunal  to 
adjust  the  Alabama  claims,  had  an  excellent  local  rep- 
utation, and  was  regarded  by  those  who  knew  him  as  a 
careful,  painstaking  and  conscientious  lawyer.  Greater 
men,  no  doubt,  have  been  judges,  but  no  better  man 
than  Morrison  R.  Waite  ever  graced  the  bench  of  the 
Supreme  Court.  I  knew  him  intimately  after  he  came  to 
Washington,  and  I  believe  that  those  who  knew  him 
best  loved  him  most.  He  was  a  plain,  practical,  sens- 
ible man,  and  conducted  the  business  of  the  Supreme 
Court  in  an  efficient  and  business-like  manner. 

When  I  commenced  practice  in  Washington,  Samuel 
Nelson,  of  New  York,  had  for  many  years  been  a  justice 


THE  UNITED  STATES  SUPREME  COURT.      191 

of  the  Supreme  Court.  He  was  the  Chesterfield  of  that 
august  body.  His  long,  flowing  hair,  white  as  silver, 
gave  to  him  a  venerable  appearance  ;  but  there  was  an 
elasticity  in  his  movements  which  a  more  youthful  man 
might  envy.  Having  been  a  fellow-boarder  with  him  for 
several  years,  I  had  an  opportunity  to  observe  his  unof- 
ficial life.  He  was  an  elegant  old  gentleman,  with  man- 
ners that  a  cavalier  of  the  olden  time  might  be  supposed 
to  have,  and  as  a  lady's  escort  he  was  without  a  peer  in 
the  official  circles  of  Washington.  We  were  together 
members  of  the  High  Joint  Commission  to  make  the 
Treaty  of  Washington,  and  I  saw  him  almost  every  day 
for  three  months  while  that  commission  was  in  session. 
Though  he  was  a  judge  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  New 
York  for  fourteen  years,  a  justice  of  the  Supreme  Court 
of  the  United  States  for  twenty-seven  years,  and  had  many 
accomplishments,  I  cannot  say  that  he  appeared  to  me 
to  be  more  or  less  than  a  dignified,  courtly  gentleman  of 
respectable  talents. 

Noah  H.  Swayne  was  appointed  justice  of  the 
Supreme  Court  in  1862,  and  died  in  1882.  Judging 
from  what  I  have  seen  and  heard,  I  do  not  think  his 
merits  have  been  fully  appreciated  by  his  professional 
brethren.  He  was  an  eminent  judge,  with  all  that  the 
term  "eminent"  implies.  He  was  a  large,  well-pro- 
portioned and  fine-looking  man,  and  his  presence  alone 
was  enough  to  impress  one  with  the  strength  of  his  char- 
acter. His  opinions  are  models  of  clearness,  force  and 
brevity.  They  are  epigrammatic  in  style.  He  did  not 
leave  the  reader  of  what  he  wrote  in  any  doubt  as  to  hi* 
meaning.  I  think  his  opinions  may  be  studied  with 
profit  by  every  lawyer  who  expects  to  be  a  jiul^e.  Justice 
Swayne  was  a  very  wealthy  man,  and  told  me  how  he 


192       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

made  his  fortune.  When  he  was  a  young  man,  practis- 
ing law  at  Toledo,  Ohio,  he  received  from  New  York  a 
demand  of  about  $3000  for  collection.  He  sued, 
obtained  judgment,  and  caused  the  real  estate  of  the 
debtor,  adjacent  to  the  town,  to  be  sold  on  execution. 
He  bid  in  the  property  for  his  clients,  but  they  refused 
to  take  it,  and  compelled  him  to  pay  the  amount  of  the 
judgment  in  money.  He  told  me  that  he  had  sold  one- 
half  of  that  property  for  $500,000,  and  that  the  remain- 
ing one-half  was  worth  not  less  than  that  sum. 

I  can  speak  of  Justice  Miller  more  knowingly  than 
of  his  associates,  because  I  was  acquainted  with  him 
long  before  his  elevation  to  the  bench.  He  came  to 
Keokuk,  Iowa,  in  1850,  where  I  was  then  circuit  judge, 
and  practised  before  me  for  the  ensuing  two  years.  I  at 
once  recognized  his  abilities.  He  was  not  remarkable 
for  his  scholarly  or  professional  attainments,  but  he 
had  what  was  worth  more  than  those  for  a  position  upon 
the  bench  :  he  had  a  natural  aptitude  for  judicial 
business.  He  was  a  born  judge.  He  had  a  sound,  well- 
balanced  mind,  fall  of  good,  hard  sense,  and  the  cap- 
acity to  discriminate  between  the  vital  and  inconsequen- 
tial points  of  a  case.  He  grappled  the  great  questions 
growing  out  of  the  civil  war  with  strength  and  success, 
and  his  opinions  stand  like  lighthouses  along  the  bound- 
ary line  between  the  delegated  powers  of  the  federal 
government  and  the  reserved  rights  of  the  states.  His 
opinion  in  the  case  of  Watson  v.  Jones,  13  Wallace, 
679,  defines  with  comprehension  and  clearness  the*  cor- 
relative jurisdictions  of  civil  and  ecclesiastical  tribunals 
in  the  United  States,  and  is  everywhere  regarded  as  a 
leading  authority  upon  that  subject.  Judge  Miller  was 
a  very  agreeable  man  socially,  but  in  the  later  years  of 


THE  UNITED  STATES  SUPREME  COURT.      193 

his  life  became  somewhat  impatient  upon  the  bench.  He 
was  no  orator  himself,  and  seemed  to  have  an  aversion  to 
all  attempts  at  oratory  in  court.  I  have  seen  him  on 
more  than  one  occasion  disjoint  with  sharp  questions  a 
beautifully-prepared  speech  with  which  an  ambitious 
orator  expected  to  charm  and  captivate  the  court.  One 
midsummer  day,  as  it  is  said,  he  was  holding  court  in  a 
Western  state,  and  a  lawyer,  whom  we  will  call  Brown, 
was  addressing  him  in  a  long,  rambling  speech.  The 
judge  listened  and  fanned  himself,  and  fidgeted  around 
on  the  bench  for  some  time,  and,  finally,  leaning  over 
his  desk,  said  in  an  audible  whisper  :  "  D — n  it,  Brown, 
come  to  the  point  !"  "What  point?"  inquired  the 
astonished  lawyer.  u  Any  point,"  responded  the  judge  ; 
and  though  the  sequel  does  not  appear,  it  is  probable 
that  there  was  a  rapid  condensation  of  talk  in  that  court- 
room after  this  short  colloquy.  A  woman  in  Illinois 
claimed  that  under  the  Constitution  of  the  United  States 
she  had  a  right  to  vote.  The  judges  of  the  election  and 
the  state  courts  decided  against  her.  She  appealed  to 
the  Supreme  Court,  and  employed  Matt  Carpenter.  No 
one  appeared  for  the  defendant  in  error,  and  Carpenter 
commenced  his  speech  by  saying  that  a  lawyer  could  not 
be  expected  to  make  much  of  an  argument  where  there 
was  no  opposition.  He  proceeded,  however,  and  very 
soon  Judge  Miller  commenced  to  ask  questions  which 
Carpenter  found  it  difficult  to  answer  ;  but  he  floundered 
along  an  hour  or  two  under  a  fire  of  interrogations  from 
the  judge,  and  concluded  by  saying,  with  a  graceful  bow, 
"I  thank  the  court  for  the  necessary  opposition." 
Judge  Miller  was  on  the  bench  of  the  Supreme  Court 
twenty-nine  years,  and  his  opinions  during  that  period, 
if  properly  collated,  would  make  an  admirable  treatise 
on  many  branches  of  American  jurisprudence. 


194       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

Justice  Field  was  appointed  in  the  same  year  with 
Miller,  and  is  the  only  justice  now  on  the  Supreme 
bench  who  was  there  while  I  was  in  the  Department  of 
Justice.  He  might  fitly  be  addressed  as  Webster 
addressed  Lafayette:  "Venerable  man,  you  have 
come  down  to  us  from  a  former  generation. "  Justice 
Field  has  a  fine  mind,  thoroughly  educated  and  trained 
for  the  legal  profession.  His  opinions  excel  in  literary 
merit,  and  are  characterized  by  vigor  and  sometimes 
pungency  of  expression.  He  is  an  independent  thinker 
and  writer.  With  him,  the  unexpected  often  happens. 
He  is  a  Democrat  in  politics  ;  but  he  vigorously  dissented 
from  the  decision  of  the  court,  though  made  by  Repub- 
licans, in  the  celebrated  "  slaughter-house  cases, "  on  the 
ground  that  they  went  too  far  in  the  direction  of  state's 
rights.  His  residence  is  in  California,  where  there  are 
more  Chinese  and  more  clamor  and  prejudice  against 
that  race  than  in  any  part  of  the  United  States  ;  but  he 
dissented  in  a  spirited  manner  from  the  decision  of  the 
court  affirming  the  Geary  law.  Most  of  the  cases  as  to 
Mexican  land  grants  in  California,  and  all,  or  nearly  all 
of  the  mineral-land  cases,  and  many  of  the  cases  as  to 
railroad  grants,  have  been  referred  to  Judge  Field  to 
write  the  opinions  of  the  court  ;  and  these  opinions  have 
not  only  reflected  credit  upon  their  author,  but  have 
been  of  great  benefit  to  the  country  in  settling  questions 
involving  vast  amounts  of  property.  Judge  Field  is 
now  seventy-seven  years  old,  but  neither  age  nor  cus- 
tom has  dimmed  the  brightness  of  his  intellect. 

Robert  Grier  was  appointed  a  justice  of  the  Supreme 
Court  in  1848,  and  resigned,  on  account  of  ill  health,  in 
1870.  He  was  a  man  of  rugged  characteristics.  He 
knew  what  he  wanted  to  do,  and  was  not  afraid  to  do  it. 


THE  UNITED  STATES  SUPREME  COURT.      195 

He  had  what  a  good  many  judges  need — judicial 
backbone.  I  have  heard  this  story  about  him.  There 
was  a  case  in  his  court  in  which  the  owner  of  a  farm 
sued  to  recover  its  possession  from  an  intruder.  The 
title  of  the  plaintiff  was  perfect  ;  but  the  counsel  for  the 
defendant  denounced  the  plaintiff  as  rich  and  grasping, 
claimed  that  his  client  was  a  poor  man  with  a  large 
family,  and  so  worked  upon  the  prejudices  and  sympa- 
thies of  the  jury  that  they  returned  a  verdict  for  the 
defendant.  Judge  Grier  said  :  u  Mr.  Clerk,  you  may 
receive  that  verdict  and  enter  an  order  setting  it  aside. 
I  want  it  understood  that  it  takes  thirteen  men  in  this 
court  to  steal  a  man's  farm."  Myra  Clark  Gaines 
claimed  to  be  the  illegitimate  daughter  of  one  Clark, 
and  that  she  was  entitled  as  his  heir  to  a  large  part  of 
the  city  of  New  Orleans.  The  Supreme  Court  at  first 
decided  against  her,  but  afterward  a  majority  of  the 
judges  decided  in  her  favor.  Judge  Grier  dissented  from 
this  last  decision  in  "  thoughts  that  breathe  and  words 
that  burn." 

William  Strong,  of  Pennsylvania,  was  appointed  a 
justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  in  1870,  and  resigned  in 
1880.  My  impression  is  that  in  the  technical  learning 
of  the  law  he  had  no  equal,  certainly  no  superior,  QII  the 
Supreme  bench.  He  was  a  state  and  federal  judge  for 
many  years,  and  retired  to  private  life  with  the  universal 
plaudit  of,  "Well  done,  good  and  faithful  servant." 
To  my  inquiry  why  he  resigned  while  his  health  and 
mental  powers  appeared  to  be  as  good  as  they  ever  were, 
he  answered  :  "I  would  rather  go  when  everybody 
would  be  glad  to  have  me  stay,  than  to  stay  until  every- 
body would  be  glad  to  have  me  go." 


196       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

Ward  H.  Hunt,  of  New  York,  was  a  justice  of  the 
Supreme  Court  from  1872  to  1881.  He  was  a  gentle- 
man of  culture  and  refinement  After  Hunt's  appoint- 
ment, some  one  asked  Judge  Black,  of  Pennsylvania, 
what  he  thought  of  the  new  justice.  The  old  judge, 
changing  his  quid  of  tobacco  from  one  cheek  to  the  other, 
smiled  significantly  and  remarked:  u  He  is  a  very 
lady-like  personage." 

I  will  add,  in  speaking  of  Judge  Black,  that  I  never 
came  in  contact  with  a  more  agreeable  man.  He  was 
a  bed-rock  Democrat,  and  I  was  a  red-hot  Republican, 
when  we  came  together,  but  he  seemed  to  be  pleased 
with  our  acquaintance.  So  sometimes  he  would  devote 
a  quiet  hour  to  conversation  with  me.  I  can  see  the  old 
gentleman  now  with  the  eye  of  memory,  composedly 
holding  his  bright  steel  tobacco-box  between  the  thumb 
and  fingers  of  his  left  hand,  and  twirling  it  with  his 
right,  while  from  his  lips  flowed  a  sparkling  stream  of 
wise  and  witty  sayings.  He  was  equally  at  home  in  the 
Bible,  Blackstone  and  Shakespeare,  and  his  memory 
was  stored  with  felicitous  illustrations  and  humorous 
anecdotes.  He  was  one  of  the  great  men  of  his  day. 

Justice  Bradley's  appointment  was  concurrent  with 
that  of  Judge  Strong.  I  think  I  am  safe  in  saying  of 
Justice  Bradley,  that  he  was  the  most  scientific  man 
ever  upon  the  bench  of  the  Supreme  Court.  I  made  a 
social  call  upon  him  one  evening,  and  found  him  in  his 
library,  poring  over  immense  sheets  of  paper  covered 
with  arithmetical  characters  ;  and  as  I  queried  about  their 
meaning,  he  gave  me  to  understand  that,  as  a  sort  of 
recreation  and  pastime,  he  was  calculating  a  transit  of 
Venus.  Most  of  the  patent  cases,  while  he  was  on  the 
bench,  and  especially  the  most  complicated  and  difficult 


THE  UNITED  STATES  SUPREME  COURT.      197 

ones,  were  referred  to  him  to  write  the  opinions  of  the 
court,  and  he  wrote  them  with  a  fountain  pen  of  law  as 
well  as  science.  He  was  accustomed  to  sit  during  an 
argument  with  his  eyes  closed,  as  though  he  was  asleep  ; 
but  his  ears  were  wide  awake,  and  his  evident  object 
was  to  secure  concentration  of  thought  by  shutting  out 
distractions  of  sight.  Justice  Bradley  was  a  small, 
quiet,  modest  man,  with  depth  and  strength  reserved  for 
all  the  demands  of  official  duty. 

David  Davis  was  appointed  a  justice  of  the  Supreme 
Court  in  1867,  and  resigned  in  1872,  when  he  was 
elected  a  senator  in  Congress  from  the  state  of  Illinois. 
He  was  a  man  of  large  physical  proportions,  great 
wealth  and  good  mental  capacity,  but  it  always  seemed 
to  me  that  he  did  not  take  that  interest  or  pride  in  his 
judicial  office  exhibited  by  some  of  his  associates  on  the 
bench.  Day-dreams  of  glory  in  other  departments  of 
the  government  haunted  his  imagination.  When  he 
became  senator,  his  ambition  to  become  President 
deprived  him  of  the  position  and  influence  in  that 
body  to  which  his  abilities  entitled  him  ;  and,  with 
all  his  aspirations  and  efforts,  he  turned  out  to  be 
a  political  failure.  I  do  not  mean  to  say  that  Jus- 
tice Davis  was  not  an  able  and  upright  judge.  I 
only  express  my  belief  that  he  did  not  reach  that 
position  in  the  judicial  history  of  the  country  which 
he  might  have  attained  if  he  had  consecrated  his  life 
wholly  to  that  end. 

James  M.  Wayne  was  appointed  a  justice  of  the 
Supreme  Court  in  1835,  and  resigned  in  1867.  He  was 
a  Jacksonian  Democrat.  He  was  in  Congress  when 
Jackson  throttled  nullification,  and  he  voted  to  strengthen 
the  hands  of  the  President.  During  the  war  of  the 


198       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

rebellion,  though  his  state  seceded,  he  remained  loyal  to 
the  Union,  and  his  record  is  that  of  a  good  man,  a  wise 
judge  and  a  true  patriot. 

I  have  now  mentioned  all  the  justices  of  the  Supreme 
Court  before  whom  I  had  the  honor  to  appear  while  I 
was  officially  connected  with  the  government  ;  and, 
taken  together,  they  embodied  in  a  worthy  manner  the 
dignity  and  power  of  the  most  important  judicial  tribu- 
nal in  the  world.  The  Supreme  Court  consists  of  nine 
justices  —  the  Chief-Justice  and  eight  associates.  They 
are  appointed  by  the  President,  by  and  with  the  advice 
and  consent  of  the  senate,  and  hold  their  offices  during 
good  behavior, —  that  is  to  say,  they  cannot  be  removed 
from  office  otherwise  than  by  impeachment.  The  sal- 
ary of  the  Chief-Justice  is  $10,500,  and  the  associates 
each  receive  $10,000  per  annum.  There  is  but  one  term 
of  the  court  in  a  year,  beginning  in  October  and  ending, 
generally,  in  May.  The  daily  session  of  the  court  com- 
mences at  noon  and  continues  till  four  o'clock  p.  M. 
Saturdays  are  consultation  days.  When  the  court  is  in 
session,  the  judges  are  robed  in  long,  flowing  black  silk 
gowns.  All  persons  present  rise  and  stand  as  the  jus- 
tices enter  the  court-room.  No  noise  or  reading  of 
newspapers  or  talking  is  allowed,  save  that  of  the  coun- 
sel addressing  the  court.  When  a  case  is  called  for 
argument,  each  justice  is  furnished  with  a  printed  copy 
of  the  record,  with  the  briefs  of  counsel  attached. 
These  he  takes  to  his  residence,  and  upon  the  examina- 
tion determines  for  himself  how  the  case  ought  to  be 
decided.  When  all  the  judges  are  ready,  they  meet  in 
consultation  ;  and  the  conclusions  of  the  majority,  if  they 
do  not  all  agree,  make  the  decision  of  the  court.  The 
Chief-Justice  designates  one  of  the  associates  to  write  the 


THE  UNITED  STATES  SUPREME  COURT.      199 

opinion,  or,  if  he  chooses,  writes  it  himself.  The  sit- 
tings of  the  court  are  in  the  old  senate-chamber.  Here 
is  where  Webster,  Clay  and  Calhoun  made  their  great 
speeches.  Here  is  where  the  mighty  men  of  the  law 
meet  in  forensic  combat.  Here  is  where  great  constitu- 
tional questions  are  discussed  and  decided,  and  here  is 
where  "  the  pen  is  mightier  than  the  sword."  Sitting 
in  the  capitol,  midway  between  the  two  houses  of  Con- 
gress, and  independent  of  both,  this  exalted  and  serene 
tribunal  holds  the  balances  of  the  government  with  a 
firm  and  equal  hand.  It  guards  the  Constitution  and 
protects  the  rights  of  the  states.  The  citadel  of  the 
nation's  unity  is  in  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United 
States. 


200       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 


THE     MILITIA. 


ADDRESS  AT  THE  LAYING  OF  THE  CORNER-STONE  OF  THE  ARMORY 

OF  THE  OREGON  NATIONAL  GUARD,  PORTLAND, 

OREGON,  AUGUST  6,  1887. 


Ladies  and  Gentlemen  :  I  have  not  had  time, 
within  the  three  days  since  I  was  requested  to  be  here, 
with  other  pressing  demands  upon  my  time,  to  prepare 
an  address  satisfactory  to  myself  or  suitable  to  this  inter- 
esting occasion  ;  and  this  is  my  apology  for  what 
follows. 

Article  II.  of  the  Amendments  to  the  Constitution 
of  the  United  States  declares  that  "a  well-regulated 
militia  being  necessary  to  the  security  of  a  free  state, 
the  right  of  the  people  to  keep  and  bear  arms  shall  not 
be  infringed." 

Experience  taught  the  framers  of  the  Constitution  that 
standing  armies,  as  they  existed  under  monarchical  gov- 
ernments, were  a  constant  menace  to  the  liberties  of  the 
people  ;  and  therefore,  though  recognizing  the  necessity 
of  arms,  they  resolved  that  a  well-regulated  militia  was 
the  only  military  power  compatible  with  the  existence 
of  a  free  state.  One  of  the  charges  brought  against  the 
King  of  Great  Britain  in  the  Declaration  of  Independ- 
ence, was  that  in  times  of  peace  he  kept  standing 
armies  in  the  colonies,  without  their  consent.  As  a 
general  rule,  standing  armies  in  all  countries  have  been 
instruments  of  oppression  and  tyranny.  Despotic  gov- 
ernments would  disappear  from  the  face  of  the  earth,  if 
a  well-regulated  militia  was  everywhere  substituted  for 


THE  MILITIA.  201 

a  standing  army  ;  because,  under  a  militia  system,  the 
citizen  and  the  soldier  are  one  and  the  same  person.  A 
free  citizen  makes  a  free  soldier. 

When  the  Constitution  declares  that  a  well-regulated 
militia  is  necessary  to  the  security  of  a  free  state,  it 
implies  that  any  different  military  organization  is 
fraught  with  danger ;  and  it  also  assumes,  with 
emphatic  clearness,  the  capability  of  man  for  self-gov- 
ernment. Liberty  is  not  imperiled  by  this  right  of  the 
citizen  to  bear  arms,  but,  on  the  contrary,  is  protected 
and  preserved  in  that  way,  under  a  government  by  the 
people  and  for  the  people.  Intelligence,  patriotism  and 
self-interest  lead  the  citizen  to  bear  his  arms  against  the 
equally  dangerous  extremes  of  despotism  and  anarchy. 
Militiamen  organized  into  companies  are  citizens  who 
voluntarily  assume  the  duties  and  obligations  of  soldiers, 
and  hold  themselves  in  readiness  to  protect  their  coun- 
try from  foreign  invasion  or  domestic  violence. 

Intelligence  is  an  indispensable  element  of  a  well-reg- 
ulated militia.  Organized  bodies  of  armed  men  in  a 
free  state,  ignorant  of  their  relations  to  their  govern- 
ment, and  of  their  obligations  to  their  fellow-men,  are  a 
source  of  weakness,  and  not  of  strength  to  the  state. 
Arms  can  safely  be  entrusted  to  those  who  understand 
the  value  of  law,  and  of  the  peace  and  good  order  of 
society.  The  ignorant,  the  vicious  and  tne  brutal  make 
poor  soldiers  as  well  as  poor  citizens.  I  think  it  is  now 
universally  admitted  that  the  fighting  capacity  of  an 
army  depends  as  much  upon  its  intellectual  advantages 
as  upon  its  animal  courage  ;  and  in  a  free  state  it  is  not 
only  necessary  for  a  soldier  to  know  how,  but  to  know 
why,  and  under  what  circumstances,  it  is  his  duty  to 
fight.  When  our  country  is  invaded  by  a  hostile  force, 


202        ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

it  is,  of  course,  the  duty  of  every  one  to  assist  in  repel- 
ling the  invader  ;  but  such  an  event  is  not  likely  to 
happen,  and  a  conflict  of  arms  is  not  probable  unless 
domestic  difficulties  should  arise  which  the  civic  power 
is  too  weak  to  suppress.  Apparently,  there  is  more 
danger  in  this  country  from  rebellion,  lawlessness,  and 
anarchy  than  from  a  too  despotic  government  or  a 
foreign  foe.  Internal  dissensions  may  create  a  state  of 
civil  war,  or  make  deadly  conflict  a  necessity  for  the 
safety  and  peace  of  the  country  ;  in  which  unhappy 
event,  more  intelligence  and  a  higher  sense  of  duty  and 
honor  will  be  required  than  in  a  war  between  the  United 
States  and  another  country.  When  those  who  under- 
stand and  appreciate  the  nature  and  theory  of  our  gov- 
ernment and  its  institutions,  its  history  and  laws,  the 
obligation  of  the  citizen  and  the  rights  of  all,  associate 
in  military  companies,  we  may  consider  our  militia  as 
"well-regulated,"  and  fit  to  guard  the  safety  of  the 
state. 

Education,  training  and  discipline  are  essential  to  a 
soldier's  accomplishments  :  without  these,  a  body  of 
armed  men  is  a  mob,  and  not  a  military  organization. 
An  untrained  soldier  is  no  more  effective  than  an  untrained 
pugilist.  To  march  to  time,  and  in  order  ;  to  handle  his 
arms  with  celerity,  ease  and  effect  ;  to  execute  move- 
ments according  to  command, —  are  things  which  men 
cannot  know  by  intuition,  but  must  learn  as  the 
mechanic  learns  his  trade.  There  has  been  considerable 
controversy  at  times  about  the  necessity  or  utility  of 
the  West  Point  Military  Academy.  I  am  not  here  to 
defend  that  institution,  but  it  must  be  admitted  that 
scientific  attainments  are  as  useful  in  the  military  as  in 
any  other  profession  or  business.  Thoroughly  educated 


THE  MILITIA.  203 

officers  are  certainly  more  competent  than  others  with- 
out that  qualification  to  teach  and  train  men  ;  and  it 
seems  to  me  that  our  military  standard  is  higher  than  it 
would  be  without  the  influence  of  the  West  Point 
Academy.  Logan  was  a  successful  military  commander, 
though  without  a  military  education  ;  but,  after  all, 
the  efficiency  of  his  army  depended  largely  upon  the 
engineering  and  other  scholarly  acquirements  of  his 
subordinate  officers  and  men.  Science  and  money,  in 
these'days,  are^factors  in  war  of  as  much  consequence  to 
a  country  as  the  numerical  force  of  its  armies.  Improve- 
ments in  the  means  of  military  destructiveness  have 
kept  pace  jWith  Bother  improvements  of  the  age  ;  but  at 
the  same^time  an  enlightened  humanity  has  divested 
" grim-visaged  war"  of  many  of  its  most  revolting 
features. 

Our  regular  army  is  not  in  any  odious  sense  a  stand- 
ing army.  To  be  sure,  it  is  a  permanent  but  compara- 
tively^diminutive  organization,  wholly  inadequate  to  the 
purposes  of  an  international  war.  It  is  hardly  sufficient 
in  size  to  garrison  the  different  military  posts  of  our 
extended  country.  There  is  no  conscription  to  fill  its 
ranks.  Soldiers  of  the  regular  army  are  the  voluntary 
subjects  of  military  law  during  the  terms  of  their  enlist- 
ment. Time  was  when  the  rank  and  file  of  the  regular 
army  was  made  [up  largely  of  the  riff-raff  of  the  Euro- 
pean world  ;  but  in  this  respect  there  has  been  a  marked 
improvement  in  its  ranks.  This  improvement  ought  to 
be  encouraged  and  increased.  There  is  no  reason  why 
a  soldier,  in  our  country,  should  not  be  an  intelligent, 
moral,  high-toned  man.  Congress  ought  to  hold  out 
such  pecuniary  and  other  considerations  as  will  induce 
the  enlistment  of  such  men.  The  more  American  blood 


204       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

there  is  in  our  military  service,  the  more  patriotic  its 
spirit  will  be.  The  honor  of  our  country  and  the  glory 
of  its  flag  are  reflected  in  the  honor  and  pride  of  the 
American  soldier. 

Be  the  merits  of  the  regular  army  what  they  may, 
the  people  of  the  United  States  must  necessarily  depend 
upon  a  well-regulated  militia  for  their  protection  and 
safety.  This  has  been  true  of  the  past,  and  it  will  be 
true  of  the  future.  From  the  fight  at  Lexington,  where 
u  the  embattled  farmers  stood  and  fired  the  shot  heard 
round  the  world,"  to  the  surrender  at  Yorktown,  the 
banner  of  the  Revolution  was  borne  aloft,  from  one 
bloody  field  to  another,  by  men  coming  from  the  peace- 
ful avocations  of  life.  Militiamen  with  their  trusty 
rifles  closed  the  war  of  1812  in  a  blaze  of  glory  by  the 
great  victory  at  New  Orleans  ;  Mexico  was  conquered 
by  an  army  chiefly  composed  of  volunteers  for  the  war  ; 
and  when  the  great  rebellion  broke  out,  the  regular 
army  dwindled  into  a  speck  compared  with  the  hundreds 
of  thousands  who  rushed  from  their  homes  into  that 
direful  conflict  Much  credit  is  due,  of  course,  to  Grant, 
Sherman,  Sheridan,  and  the  other  great  generals  of  the 
war  ;  but  the  Union  was  saved  by  the  fighting  of  men 
who  belonged  to  the  militia  of  the  states,  many  of  whom 
sleep  in  unknown  graves,  where  they  bravely  fought 
and  fell. 

Human  history,  sacred  and  profane,  is  replete  with  the 
annals  of  war.  Civilization  and  Christianity  have  won 
great  triumphs  in  the  enlightenment  and  elevation  of 
mankind  ;  but  they  have  not  eradicated,  and,  as  it  seems 
now,  never  can  eradicate  from  the  human  heart  the  love 
of  military  glory.  Patriotic  ardor  and  personal  heroism 
have  been  through  all  time  the  themes  of  song  and 


THE  MILITIA.  205 

story.  The  bravery  of  men  and  the  beauty  of  women 
are  twin  pictures  upon  the  historic  page.  Martial  music, 
the  waving  of  banners,  the  glitter  of  equipage,  the 
grace  of  military  evolutions  —  in  short,  "  the  pomp  and 
circumstance  of  glorious  war,"  —  awaken  in  every  bosom 
emotions  of  admiration  and  sympathy.  War  for  ambi- 
tious purposes  or  national  aggrandizement  is  to  be  dep- 
recated ;  but,  nevertheless,  the  cultivation  of  a  military 
spirit  among  a  people  is  not  without  beneficial  results. 
Primarily,  it  develops  an  attachment  to  the  flag  which 
represents  the  integrity,  honor  and  glory  of  the  coun- 
try. There  is  nothing  grovelling  or  sordid  in  a  true 
military  spirit.  It  promotes  physical  development, 
creates  a  feeling  of  self-respect  and  a  proper  sense  of 
personal  honor,  and  in  its  real  character  is  a  generous, 
chivalric,  and  courageous  spirit. 

Voluntary  associations,  like  the  military  companies 
in  this  city,  are  formed  to  foster  this  spirit  and  open  a 
school  in  which  the  citizen  may  acquire  the  accomplish- 
ments of  the  professional  soldier.  What  ought  to 
commend  these  associations  to  popular  favor  is  the  fact 
that  our  most  prominent  and  promising  young  men  - 
the  youthful  intelligence,  ambition  and  energy  of  our 
community  —  enter  into  their  formation.  When  for- 
eign or  domestic  foes  threaten  our  peace,  we  cati  trust 
these  men  ;  for  they  are  personally  and  deeply  interested 
in  the  stability  of  our  institutions  and  the  supremacy  of 
our  laws. 

Unusual  attention  is  directed  to  this  subject  in  all 
parts  of  our  country,  and  not  without  a  cause.  Unhap- 
pily, the  United  States  have  become  the  receptacle  of 
the  offscourings  of  the  earth.  Paupers  are  shipped 
from  foreign  ports  to  our  shores,  and  fugitives  from 


206       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILUAMS. 

justice  find  here  a  city  of  refuge.  Communists,  socialists 
and  nihilists  —  the  enemies  of  God  and  man  —  are 
swarming  from  all  parts  of  Europe  to  this  free  land,  and 
with  diabolical  zeal  are  working  up  an  organized 
hostility  to  the  reign  of  law  and  the  rights  of  property. 
To  meet  any  possible  contingency  that  may  arise  out 
of  this  state  of  things,  it  is  proper,  if  not  necessary, 
that  law-abiding  citizens  should  organize  themselves 
into  armed  and  trained  associations  to  uphold,  when- 
ever it  is  imperiled,  the  cause  of  law  and  order.  Our 
experience  with  the  motley  crowd  of  Europeans  and 
Asiatics  flocking  to  this  country  may  demonstrate  the 
truth  of  that  declaration  in  the  federal  Constitution 
that  "a  well-regulated  militia  is  necessary  to  the  secur- 
ity of  a  free  state." 

Our  legislative  assembly,  at  its  late  session,  passed  an 
act  to  organize  and  regulate  the  militia  of  this  state. 
Careful  provisions  are  made  for  the  enrollment  of  men, 
the  appointment  and  election  of  officers,  the  equipment 
of  companies,  military  boards  and  courts-martial,  and 
all  other  necessary  details.  Companies  formed  by  the 
enlistment  of  men  are  designated  by  this  act  as  the 
"Oregon  National  Guard."  No  immediate  necessity 
for  this  legislation  may  be  apparent ;  but  it  is  a  wise 
saying  that  one  way  to  prevent  war  is  to  be  prepared 
for  it,  and  besides,  if  thoroughly  carried  out,  this  act 
will  become  educational  in  its  influence,  and  a  thing  of 
joy  and  pride  to  the  state.  We  have  thousands  of 
strong,  active  young  men  in  Oregon  who  cannot  spend 
their  time  and  money  to  better  advantage  than  to  enroll 
themselves,  learn  the  manual  of  arms,  and  submit  to 
the  instructions  and  discipline  of  a  military  training. 
Independent  of  these  practical  results,  there  is  nothing 
that  contributes  more  to  the  pleasure  of  the  people  upon 
anniversary  and  other  public  days  than  a  military  parade. 


THE  MILITIA.  207 

When  we  hear  the  music  that  inspired  the  soldiers  of 
Washington,  Scott  and  Grant,  and  see  the  battalions  of 
men  gracefully  moving,  with  their  arms  glittering  in 
the  sunlight,  under  a  flag  "  whose  hues  were  born  in 
heaven,"  we  feel  a  glow  of  pride  in  our  past  his- 
tory and  of  bright  hopes  for  the  future  of  our  country. 

The  legislative  assembly,  at  its  last  session,  passed 
another  act,  authorizing  county  courts  to  erect,  in  cities 
containing  over  10,000  inhabitants,  armories,  safe,  suit- 
able and  of  sufficient  size  for  the  drill  of  a  company. 
Pursuant  to  this  act,  the  County  Court  of  Multnomah 
County  determined  to  erect  an  armory  in  this  city  ;  and 
we  have  assembled  to-day  to  lay  its  corner-stone.  We 
meet  under  auspicious  circumstances.  Heaven  is  smil- 
ing upon  us  with  sunshine  and  breeze  :  Nature  has 
scattered  its  blessings  and  beauties  around  us  with  lavish 
hand  :  our  city  and  state  are  prosperous,  and  our  coun- 
try united  and  at  peace.  May  we  not  consider  these 
things  as  omens  of  good  to  this  armory? 

When  the  building  is  finished,  it  will  be  one  of  the 
most  substantial  and  beautiful  structures  in  this  state. 
It  will  occupy  one-half  of  a  block,  at  the  corner  of 
Ninth  and  C  streets,  being  two  hundred  feet  deep  and 
one  hundred  feet  in  width,  and  two  stories  high.  The 
lower  story,  with  rooms  twelve  feet  in  the  clear,  will  be 
built  of  stone,  and  the  upper  story,  with  a  room  sixteen 
feet  in  the  clear,  will  be  of  brick.  The  roof  is  to  be  of 
tin,  surmounted  with  suitable  towers.  The  cost  will  be 
about  thirty-five  thousand  dollars.  Such  a  building  will 
be  a  credit  and  an  ornament  to  the  city  of  Portland. 

The  laying  of  this  corner-stone  is  a  deeply  suggestive 
ceremony.  It  takes  hold  upon  the  boundless  future. 
Many  generations  will  come  and  go  :  a  great  city  will 
grow  up  here,  with  its  rush  and  rattle  and  noise  :  dumb 
forgetfulness  will  make  our  memories  its  prey,  while 


208       ADDRESSES  BY  GEORGE  H.  WILLIAMS. 

this  stone  remains  unchanged  and  unmoved.  While  the 
builders,  with  hammer  and  trowel,  are  forming  and  fit- 
ting materials  for  this  armory,  we  will  build  our  antici- 
pation upon  the  faith  that,  when  it  is  finished,  it  will  be 
dedicated  to  the  honor  and  glory  of  our  country. 

Presuming  upon  the  familiar  adage,  "Old  men  for 
counsel  and  young  men  for  war,"  I  will  venture  to  say 
to  the  young  gentlemen  who  may  use  this  armory,  that 
there  are  responsibilities  as  well  as  pleasures  in  store  for 
them.  The  people  who  pay  for  this  building  have  a 
right  to  expect  that  its  use  will  be  a  benefit  to  this  com- 
munity. Their  equivalent  for  what  they  will  have 
expended  in  its  construction  will  be  the  improvement 
of  those  who  congregate  within  its  walls.  To  learn  the 
manual  of  arms  and  perfect  themselves  in  military  prac- 
tices follow  as  a  matter  of  course  ;  but  the  beneficiaries 
and  graduates  of  this  institution  ought  to  be  gentlemen 
as  well  as  soldiers.  There  will  be  an  opportunity  and 
every  reasonable  inducement  for  the  young  man  who 
comes  here  to  drill,  to  acquire  the  habit  of  correct 
deportment,  to  cultivate  self-respect  and  a  sensitiveness 
to  his  honor,  to  learn  civility  to  his  superiors  and  polite- 
ness to  his  equals,  and  to  become  what  is  known  to  the 
military  code  as  a  soldier  and  a  gentleman.  This  armory 
ought  to  be  as  sacred  to  good  morals  as  a  church  is  to 
religion. 

To  indicate  the  character  of  this  building,  above  its 
loftiest  tower  will  float  the  flag  of  the  United  States. 
"Excelsior"  is  the  appeal  of  its  star-lit  emblazonry  to 
those  who  shall  assemble  here.  While  this  building 
stands,  let  no  unresented  insult  be  offered  to  that  flag, 
and  no  disloyal  hand  stain  it  with  dishonor  ;  and  when 
this  corner-stone  shall  have  mouldered  into  dust,  may 
that  beautiful  emblem  of  our  country's  union  and  glory 
wave  triumphantly,  as  it  now  does, 

"O'er  the  land  of  the  free  and  the   home  of  the  brave." 


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